Kamen Rider OOO Redux: My way
by Austin Whitaker
Summary: What would it be like if Eiji hadn't gained the medals? Read on to find out! Disclaimer: The story may start out similar to Eiji's story, to set up how the OOO's powers work, but I promise it will have original Plots, Monsters, and Fights. credit of this story goes to LiamX315
1. And so it Begins

**The Hunger, the Medals, and a New Hero**

**This is a retelling of Kamen Rider OOO, with someone else in place of Eiji and Hina-chan**

In the depth of darkness, a conscious mind floats though the void, desperately wanting to be free. "I must be free" it thought, before slipping back into eternal sleep.

One warm Sunday afternoon, a young man was walking through a city, on his way to meet some friends of his. He was wearing baggy cargo shorts that reached past his knees. He had a zebra striped V-neck shirt, and a blue life jacket like vest. He felt the wind whip through his hair, cementing it as windblown. He had lived in Crown City for all his life, so he knew its layout like the back of his own hand. Today, he had agreed to meet his friends in the local park for one last adventure before school started up on Monday, but as the temperature was rising, he was beginning to have some serious reservations about this idea.

He dodged through the streets, being careful not to get hit by the cars. He was walking through Downtown, on his way to a park. He soon saw a large building coming into view. It was the local science museum, a place he loved to visit as a child. "Ah why not, it's too hot to be playing in a park" he thought, deciding to detour into the cool interior of the museum. "Man I miss this place" he thought, taking in all the signs for current and coming attractions. He went up to the ticket counter and handed the woman there 15 bucks. "Thank' ya darlin' and don't forget to check out the latest exhibit on the lost cultures of Great Britain!" she said in a perky voice, handing him a ticket.

He walked through the museum, taking note of all the animal statues in the main hallway. Tigers, Lions, Gorillas, an Orca, there seemed to be a large variety of statues decorating the hall. He climbed to the second floor, deciding to see what this "Treasures of Great Britain" was all about. He found himself in one of the halls reserved for special exhibits. As he wandered through it, he took note of the tapestries, each depicting a different set of animals, each in a different color. In the glass cases he saw several silver coins piled up, with pictures of the same animals on them. "Ok, this is weird" he thought, "None of this seems to be British related" he soon came to a room that was clearly meant to be the main attraction. It appeared to be a sarcophagus, with a strange handle like object on the top of it. It seemed a little out of place and a little small to hold remains. _**Attention all, the museum will be closing in one hour**_a voice over the intercom said. "Guess I got here too late" the kid thought, glancing at his watch, showing it to be 4 pm. He turned to leave, as the consciousness woke up again. "Wait" it thought "It can't be, could he be...?" the voice thought, sensing the boy nearby. "I have to be free. NOW" a small explosion created a crack in the coffin, allowing a solidary red coin to roll out.

"The hell?" the teen wondered aloud, noticing the coin. Suddenly, the coin rose in the air and flew towards the boy's arm, attaching itself to his hand "Hey, wait, wait!" he yelled, backing into a case containing the silver coins. He inadvertently broke the case open when he stumbled into it. The silver coins began to form on his arm, and suddenly, they raised his arm up, and they dragged him toward the coffin. He tried to resist the coins, but they were pulling him closer until his hand was directly on the handle. He felt his arm turning the slab, opening the coffin.

A large explosion rocked to room, throwing the man across the room. He saw his arm was now free, and as he looked towards the coffin, he saw it had been reduced to a large pile of the silver coins. He noticed several multicolored coins resting on the pile. They began to glow, rising into the air, drawing the silver coins onto themselves, forming what appeared to be bodies. "That's it, I'm outta here!" he cried, scrambling to his feet, not noticing that a red coin had fallen into his pocket. He ran out of the museum, and followed the masses of patrons evacuating under the pretense of a terrorist attack.

"YES!" one of the bodies proclaimed, stretching his arms, having assumed a green insect like monster. The others took the form of a black and yellow cat monster, a grey mammal monster, and a blue sea creature form. "It is so good to be freeeeee!" the blue creature said, twirling around. "Hurray, we free!" the grey one said, rushing to the female's side. "Hate to ruin this party" the cat one sneered, "but we aren't exactly complete you know" the others looked at their bodies, noticing that each was missing a part of their armor. "OUR MEDALS!" the girl shrieked, "where are they?" the grey one asked. "I think I saw Ankh making off with about one of each of ours" he laughed, throwing his hands behind his head. "We WILL find him" the green one replied as the four monsters became medals once again, and flew out of the museum, punching holes in the walls.

Once the man was safely outside he turned to look at the museum, not seeing any traces of the medals but he did see the approaching police cars. So he decided to avoid talking to the police for an hour by hiding in the local zoo. As he walked toward the entrance, he failed to notice a disembodied red arm following him.

The man walked through the zoo, grumbling about how much the price had risen since the last time he had been here. "25 bucks for a ticket my ass!" he thought, shooting a dirty look toward the ticket booths. He didn't notice however, that the arm was staring at him from behind a bush. "I want it!" it whispered, following him. The man passed the concessions, and noted his growing hunger. He reached for some cash from his pocket, when he felt the coin. He pulled it out and looked at it. It had grooved edges, the rim seemed to be made of gold, the inside of the coin was like a ruby, and it had a strange engraving on it, which resembled a nondescript bird.

He was turning it over in his hands when he lost his grip and dropped it, and the coin rolled under a vending machine. "Oh Great" he sighed, crouching down, trying to see the coin. "Do you need some help?" a cheerful voice asked "yeah, i lost something under there." He noticed the person he was talking to was a girl about his age, with waist length red hair. She was of Irish decent, as was the young man.

"Don't worry kid" she said, grabbing the vending machine on both sides. Suddenly, she lifted the machine three feet off the ground! "Well?" she asked, and the man quickly stopped being amazed at her strength and reached down to grab the coin when he came face to face with the floating arm. "AAAAHHHHH" the girl screamed, throwing the machine a yard away before she ran away herself at top speed. "w-w-What the shit?" he stammered, backing away in panic "I just took back what was _mine_" it said, trough no visible mouth as it reached for the coin." The man quickly grabbed the coin and continued running. "I don't care if it is his" he thought. "He CAN'T get it back without some effort"

**Meanwhile, at the gift shop**

The green monster was pacing around the shop, looking at the cowering shoppers. "Humanity really hasn't changed that much" he thought, before grabbing a man from the crowd. "Show me your desire!" the monster said, before taking one of the silver coins and putting in the back of the man's head where a coin slot mysteriously appeared. A strange, white bandage monster fell out of the man, and stood up, before immediately "eating" all the travel postcards in the shop. "Excellent" the main monster said, wriggling his fingers in a maniacal way. Soon, after devouring half the postcards in the shop, the monster seemed to molt, revealing a monster that resembled an Atlas Beetle. "Good, now go and get our Medals" he commanded of the monster "Right away, Lord Uva" the creature said with a bow, and it took flight, following the trail of the arm. "Soon, we will be complete!" Uva thought, before he left to return to his fellow monsters.

**Back in the Zoo, near the Bird House**

The young man had been running for what seemed to be hours, desperately trying to lose the arm, but no matter how far he ran, he still could not shake his pursuer. "He must be able to sense this thing or something" he thought, resting to catch his breath, before a new sound came to his attention. It was the sound of people screaming in terror. He followed the screams till he saw the source, a strange beetle like monster was there, attacking everyone. He soon saw that the monster was holding the arm, and it was clearly in pain. Even though he was scared of the arm, he knew he couldn't stand by and let this happen "Oh no you don't!" the boy yelled, jumping off the ledge he was on, trying to deliver a kick to the monster's head. However, the monster seemed prepared for this, as it whirled around, and shot a beam of electricity at the young man, sending him falling back. It was able, however, enough to loosen its grip, as the arm was able to escape, and was about to flee, when it heard the man's screams.

The man was about 3 seconds from smashing his head on the pavement, when he suddenly felt something grab him by the shirt, saving him. He opened his eyes to see that the arm had grabbed him. "Hey, kid, you just going to lay here?" it asked "What's your name?" it inquired further "A-Austin, Austin Whitaker" he replied, feeling relief he was not about to die. "Well, Austin, I've got a little problem on my hands, and I could use your help." The arm said, gesturing toward the monster at the top of the stairs. "S-Sure" Austin replied, getting to his feet. The arm quivered and something fell out of the hand, which Austin immediately recognized as the slab that sealed the coffin. The arm put it around his waist, to which it began glowing, then the stone shattered, revealing it to be more modern looking, and forming a strap around his waist, making it look like on oversized belt.

"You know that medal you have?" the arm asked, seeming almost curious, if an arm can look curious that is. "Yeah this one?" Austin asked holding up the red coin Medal. "Yeah, that's it. Here, use it with these" the arm said, holding up two more medals, a green and yellow one. Austin took them, and noticed that the yellow one had a carving of a tiger's face on it, and the other had a grasshopper on it. "Now, put them in the belt!" the arm commanded. Austin noticed in fact that the belt had three slots, and the medals had stripes on the back, referring to the order they went in.

"Don't listen to Ankh, you will regret, as will all of us!" the monster said, walking toward the two. "Now, who am I going listen to, the guy who saved me, or the one who tried to kill me?" Austin said, slotting the medals into the belt. "Here" the Arm instructed, pulling a ring-like object off of the belt an giving it to Austin. "Scan the Medals and say HENSHIN! Then hold it up to your chest" Ankh explained. Austin slid the scanner over the medals, the device making a ping like sound as it read each medal. "Henshin!" he yelled, holding the ring up to his chest.

Three energy rings appeared around him, one circling vertically, and the other two circled Horizontally, all containing five Medals, of the same colors Austin remembered seeing on the tapestries at the museum. "TAKA. TORA. BATTA!" the scanner seemed to sing. "TATOBA. T-T-T-T-TATOBA!" it finished as the rings interlocked, creating a new symbol containing the bird, tiger and grasshopper. The symbol landed on Austin's chest, and energy flowed from it, creating black lightweight armor all over his body. Then, green energy gave him accents on his legs, yellow energy gave him folded up claws on his arms, and red energy seemed to land a bird on his helmet.

"This is so cool!" he said, admiring his new armor "And it even sings?" "Don't mind the song" Ankh said as he slapped Austin in the head "I don't know why it does that, but any way, get ready!" he advised. The monster swooped with its arms, but a tiger's roar escaped from the symbol, and the claws on Austin's arms unfolded, catching the monster, as he sliced it with his other arm. "Aw yeah, just like Wolverine!" Austin said, chasing after the monster delivering more slices. However, the monster ducked, and caught him off guard. He proceeded to deliver a series of powerful blows to Scott, which caused the Tiger part to flicker, as if it was losing power.

"Kid, here, put this in the middle!" Ankh yelled, tossing a new, blue medal towards Austin. The medal had the engraving of what appeared to be an Eel. "Alright, let's rock!" Austin said as he switched out the medals, being careful to put the Tora medal in the little medal case on his belt. He scanned the Medals again. "TAKA! UNAGI! BATTA!" The scanner sang as a new ring replaced the tiger, adding white lightning bolts down the sides of Austin's arms, and white tubes connecting his wrists to his shoulders.

"Let's see what you can do!" he said as a blue flash engulfed the tubes as the moved from their holders to Austin's hands, and he saw that they were now whips. "Alright! Let's whip it good!" he cried, noticing that both the monster and Ankh were NOT happy with this pun. "What? Too much?" he said, as he struck the monster with the whips, and a jolt of electricity traveled down the whip and connected with the monster, electrocuting it. He continued to strike at the monster, and every time he struck it, more silver medals fell out of the creature, almost as if it was bleeding them. "Now kid, scan them again to finish it!" Ankh said, clinching himself in victory. Austin ran the Scanner over the medals once more, and it sang "SCANNING CHARGE"

Suddenly, Austin saw a targeting symbol appear on the monster from the eyes of the helmet. He launched the whips, holding him in place while electrocuting him. His legs then seemed to morph into grasshopper like legs, and he jumped in the air, almost 20 feet of the ground, before he finished the arc by connecting his foot against the monster, which immediately exploded into a shower of Medals. "Wow" Austin thought as he returned the whips to their holsters. He walked over to the pile of medals, and saw Ankh wriggling in them, seeming like he was bathing in them. "So many! So Many glorious Cell Medals!" he cried, and absorbed a few, making a noise that sounded like he was eating them. Then, there seemed to be a swarm of cell medals on the back of Ankh that formed into an ornamental bird on the back of the arm creature. Lurking in the shadows however, a man in his late twenties was watching this. "He's the one we're supposed to count on? Pathetic." He sighed as he picked up a red and grey soda can, popped the top, flipped it over, and it unfolded into a bird like design. As it took off, thirty or so similar cans at the man's feet sprang to life, unfolding into similar forms. They all flew towards the duo, forming a wave of mechanical birds, ready for the attack.

Count The Medals:

Taka X2

Batta

Tora

Zou

Unagi

**All credit of this story goes ****to** **LiamX315**


	2. They Say It's Your Birthday

**The Team, the Monster, and the Birthday**

Austin stared at the arm, wondering what was going to happen next, when the sound of flapping metal gave him his answer. He turned to see the swarm heading his way. "I knew it,Alfred Hitchcock was right!" he yelled as he braced for impact, when he noticed the birds were diving past him, and grabbing all of the cell medals. "No!" Ankh yelled as he tried to chase after them, managing to wrestle one cell medal away from the birds. While he was fighting it, Austin got a good look at the bird and saw that it wasn't flesh and blood, but made of metal. "Stupid creatures!" Ankh growled as he absorbed the medal "What were those things?" Austin asked "How the hell should I know?" Ankh growled. "He, wait, how do I transform back?" Austin asked. "Oh, that's simple, turn the belt back." Austin noticed that the belt was indeed tilted to one side, so he returned it to its original position. Suddenly, his armor glowed, and vanished, leaving him with the four medals in one hand and the Belt in the other. Ankh suddenly grabbed both items, absorbing them too. "He, wait, I thought you wanted me to help?" Austin asked, chasing after him. "I do, but it's on MY terms" he said, flicking at Scott.

**Meanwhile, in an office building**

A man was sitting behind a grand desk, looking at some reports on his computer, with several cakes of all shapes and size around him. His office was very spacious, was tastefully decorated, and even had a wine bar, grand Piano and a chandelier. Sitting on one of the couches was a woman dressed in a pink business suit, who was reading a fashion magazine while eating a slice of one of the cakes. Suddenly, one of the large windows opened, and the swarm of birds entered, yet the two didn't seem to notice aside from the woman picking her plate up to get it out of the way. The birds stacked the medals neatly into a pyramid form on the coffee table before piling themselves into a pyramid on a side table in their can forms. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" the man exclaimed at seeing the huge pile of cell medals. "It looks like OOO is doing a good job out there." The woman said, pouring herself a cup of tea and readjusting the flower in her perfectly pirmmed hair. "Of course he is, he is OOO!" the man said, getting up from his desk to look at the giant TV screen on the wall. The picture it displayed was of Austin talking with Ankh. "And he has a great reputation to live up to!" he said, turning his back to the woman. "Ms. Satonaka, have you prepared the offerings?" he asked of the woman. "Yes sir, they are being wrapped as we speak she said, taking a sip of tea. "SUBARASHII!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms up in excitement.

**Back on the streets**

An ice cream truck was parked on a street, addressing a crowed of children, so the seller was not aware that Ankh had his, well, himself in the man's freezer. Austin was trying to find Ankh, having lost him after chasing him for 3 city blocks. "Hi there" Ankh suddenly said, appearing behind Austin, holding three popsicles. "Where did you go? Wait, where did you get those?" Austin asked, noticing the ice candy "Swiped them from that guy back there" Ankh said, eating two of the popsicles in the same way he ate the medals. "Dude, that's stealing!" Austin said, trying to see if the guy had taken notice of his robbery. "I know what it's called, and I don't care" Ankh said with an air of ignorance. "Can you even taste those?" Austin asked, admitting defeat in this argument. "I can tell they are cool and refreshing, as you can" he said, enjoying his ill-gotten gain. "Are you _ever_going to tell what that was back at the zoo? Or what _you_ are for that matter?" Austin asked, his hands on his hips in curiosity. "I am a Greeed a creature made of complete desire, created 800 years ago by alchemists, as are the others, Kazari, Uva, Mezool, and Gamel, each of us embodies a different animal type and element we are.." "HOLD IT!" Austin cut him off, grabbing him. "This is all moving way too fast," Austin whined, shaking Ankh.

Later, the two found their way to a river bank. "So what are these medals?" Austin asked. "We Greeed are comprised of Cell medals" he explained as he held up a random cell medal. "However, we are also made of Core Medals which hold the cell medals together" he continued, holding up the Taka medal. "So back there, that was a Greeed?" Austin asked "Good god no!" Ankh laughed, with a twinge of annoyance in his voice. "Greeed are able to create monsters known as Yummies, creatures that are also comprised of cell medals, but aren't made of Core Medals. That's what you fought back there. Basically, we are like this Popsicle; the ice is like our cell medals, and the stick is like our core medals." Without the stick..." he exclaimed as he shoved the third Popsicle into Austin's mouth "...It falls apart" he said as he pulled the stick out and Austin felt the ice fall apart in his mouth. "Ow, Brain Freeze!" Austin complained, due to swallowing a whole Popsicle at once.

**Elsewhere in town**

Two teenage girls where sitting on park bench, each wearing around 100,000 dollars' worth of Jewelry, clothing and electronics, and laying all around them were dozens of scratch off lottery tickets. "I don't get it, we bought 45 tickets, why can't we find the winning one?" one asked. "I don't know, they say you need to buy a lot to win, and 45 is a lot!" the second one answered.

"This will be easier than I thought!" Uva smirked to himself, solidifying behind the first girl. "Let's see your desire, honey" he said as he slid a cell medal into her head, ignoring the screams of the best friend. A white Yummy emerged from her back, and began running of to find its meal. "Ah, just like old times" Uva smiled, it was time to tear this place up.

**Back with the heroes**

Austin was lying on a bench, and Ankh was floating on a tree, when he suddenly heard the sound of medals being collected inside a Yummy. "It's time, get up you oaf!" he said, grabbing Austin by the scruff of the neck. "Ow, ow, ok, I'm going!" Austin said, running after Ankh. The two soon found the Yummy attacking a turned over Armored Car, and was gorging itself on the cash inside. "Alight, let's do this!" Austin said, holding his hand out for the belt and medals. "Pfft" Ankh said, shoving his hand away "That thing hasn't even molted yet; we won't get anything for it! He exclaimed, keeping an eye (or finger) on the Yummy. Austin was forced to sit and watch as the Yummy continued to eat the money. "This will NOT help the economy" he quipped, watching as the bandages began to fall off the Yummy, and it suddenly grew much larger than the other one, resembling an Ant the size of a Hummer. "Alright dude, give me the gear!" Austin said, grabbing Ankh "No, if you destroy it now, we won't get as big a pay out!" Ankh said as he shook Austin off "Just let it eat that building, and then you can destroy it" he said as the Ant Yummy proceeded to devour the building. "No, what about the people inside?" Austin protested. "Listen to me, we care about one thing here, and one thing only, the Medals, that's ALL" Ankh said in a deadpan voice

"Well, that's not how I roll" Austin said as he ran toward the building intent on warning the people inside. As he climbed the stairs, he ushered the masses outside, trying to beat the creature to the top. Suddenly, one of the evacuees shoved Scott so hard; he was pushed out a window, holding onto an unsteady beam to keep from falling. "You really are a dumbass, you know that?" Ankh said, appearing above the window, holding the belt. "Here, if you want to transform _so_ badly" he said hovering next to Scott. Suddenly Austin grabbed Ankh as the two began falling towards the earth. "Promise me Ankh, promise me that you will let me use this power to save people first, and we worry about medals later." He said as the two fell. "Are you insane?" Ankh yelled as they fell "Promise!" Austin screamed "Fine, Fine we'll protect people, whatever!" Austin then placed the belt on his waist and the medals in their slots. "HENSHIN!" he screamed over the air

As the suit finished forming over him, Austin shoved the claws into the wall, slowing his fall till he was able to land in a pile of rubble. "Oh man, let's not do that again" Austin said as he got to his feet, his entire body hurting from the impact. "Well if you would have waited..." Ankh started, but Austin stopped paying attention before he could continue the insult. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" a booming voice exclaimed behind them. They jumped to see the mysterious man broadcasting himself on an LCD Screen on an adjacent building. "It's not my Birthday" Austin said, completely confused. "No, I'm talking about it being OOO's birthday!" "OOO?" Austin asked, turning to Ankh. "The armor you're wearing, idiot" Ankh said, turning away. "And for this momentous occasion, we have provided you with some, gifts" he said, gesturing to the right. Austin and Ankh turned to see that there was a large, rectangular box lying next to a vending machine, which also had a bow on it. Austin opened the box to find a sword and five cell medals among some straw filler. "Cool!" Austin said, lifting up the three foot sword." "Oh, and there's a little _bonus_ gift in there as well." The man said. Austin rifled through the filler till he found a small coin box. He opened it, to find a light blue Core Medal that had an engraving of an Octopus on it. "You, wait, how?" Ankh stammered, clearly lost for words. "Thank you mister, uh..." Austin was unsure what to call this man, he hadn't said his name. "Mr. Kougami, Kosei Kougami" he said, before his face flickered off of the screen. "That was nice, a little random, but nice!" Austin said, removing the Batta medal and replacing it with this new medal. "How does he have that medal?" Ankh was asking himself. Austin scanned the medals and it sang: "TAKA! TORA! TAKO!" as a new medal slid in place, completely covering Austin's legs with what looked like upside down tentacles.

"Taco?" Austin asked? "Oh right, _Tako,_ is the Japanese word for octopus." He remembered from his Japanese class last year. He ran his hand down his new armor, and found it was now stuck on one of the suction cups. He struggled to get free for a few seconds, when he noticed that the suction cups were also on the underside of his feet. "Alright!' he exclaimed as he ran toward the building, sword in hand. He took a running leap at the building, and a glow enveloped his legs, and he found himself stuck to the side of the building. "This is so cool!" he thought as he ran up the wall to catch up with the Ant Yummy, which was about the size of a whale at this point. As he ran toward the beast, he slashed with his sword, damaging its legs, and Ankh absorbed all the cell medals that fell. Finally Austin reached the top and the armor separated, forming what could only be described as a "Skirt of Tentacles" that grabbed the railing.

He then jumped down, stabbing the Ant in the throat, and proceeded to slice straight downward, before landing clumsily on the ground. The Yummy fell behind him, and immediately started chasing after him. Austin ran toward the vending machine, and accidentally dropped a cell medal into the machine and touched a bar, causing the machine to transform into a motorcycle.

"Cool! I've always wanted a bike!" he said as he landed on it. He started off on it, gaining some room on the yummy. As he was driving, he noticed a slot for medals on the sword. He dropped three medals into it and pulled the handle, sliding the three medals into a visible chamber. "Wait, if I can scan Core Medals, then what about Cell medals?" he wondered as he swiped the scanner over them, it sang; "TRIPLE SCANNING CHARGE!" as the blade glowed bright blue. "Alright, now let's finish this!" Austin yelled as he drove toward the Yummy, stabbing it and slicing through it till he was on the other side. "AHHHH, See Yah!" he yelled, slashing the creature. He saw that the sword not only cut through the creature, but also through the building and the _air behind it_! Just as Austin was beginning to worry about it, he saw that the building straightened and repaired itself. Just as Austin was catching his breath, he was hit by a shower of Medals. Ankh then appeared, absorbing almost all of them. "Ah, that's more like it!" he said as he was engulfed in a swarm of medals. He seemed to glow, and quivered as he absorbed the last of the medals. Five red medals floated out of Ankh, and the cell medals engulfed them, forming a humanoid body, similar to the monsters Austin had seen earlier. They solidified into a form that was a red, monstrous, humanoid bird form that had a green visor. However, he seemed to be missing half of his face, and his belt seemed to be empty.

"Ugh, still not complete, but I guess this will do, for now" Ankh said as he admired his new body. He then snatched all the medals back from Austin, and he turned away. "So what, you just wanted to use me to get your body back?" he asked angrily. "No, I do still need you." He said, turning back towards Austin. "I may be almost complete, but the other Greeed are no push over. I do need OOO's help to take them down, so I guess we do still need each other" he said, glancing over his shoulder. "Then where are you going?" Austin asked "I can't walk around like this" Ankh said, looking down at his body." Ankh then sprouted two giant energy wings and took flight. "I'll be back, count on it" he said as he took off. He dropped the belt into Austin's hand, apparently as a promise gift. Austin walked off, noticing that it was now 9 pm, and that his family would be wondering why he was staying out so late on a school night. He hurried home, not noticing that four figures were watching him as he got on a bus.

"We should just get him now, Kazari" Uva pressed, addressing the cat monster. "No brother." Kazari sighed with an air of annoyance "He doesn't have the medals, it would be pointless and a waste of our energy" he began twirling a cell medal in his fingers. "It will be my turn next" he assured his brother. "We'll strike him when he's most vulnerable" he turned, revealing he has a flier from Crown High, advertising the start of the new school year the next day.

Count The Medals:

Taka X2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X3

Batta

Tora

Zou

Unagi, Tako

**All credit of this story goes ****to** **LiamX315**


	3. Back to school

**The New School Year, the Track Runner, and the New Girl**

Austin opened his eyes, feeling the light shining on his face from between the curtains of his window. "Was that all real? Was I really a superhero?" Austin thought when he remembered his fight against the two Yummies. He got up and saw the proof he needed. On his desk was the belt, and a note from himself "Dude, that was no dream, it really happened" He smiled at the thought of him being a superhero. He had always wanted to be a superhero, but superpowers weren't real (or at least, so he had been told). He got ready for his first day of Senior Year of high school, making sure to pack the belt "After all, never know when I might need to transform" he thought as he slung his back pack over his shoulders. He headed downstairs, being careful not to disrupt the pair of cats sleeping on the steps. "Geez, Alice, Bartholomew, can you guys pick a worst place to sleep?" he asked of the cats, one of which raised its head as if to say "What of it, pal?" Austin noticed a note from his parents, what had gone to work early, but promised to take him out to dinner that night. "Sorry guys, but I've got plans" Austin smirked in anticipation. He had been seeing a Hispanic girl by the name of Sam, and they had made plans to go out after school, and Austin had no desire to reschedule this date.

He walked out the door, and was about to walk to the bus stop, when he spotted one of the strange Vending Machines from the other day sitting next to the garage. "Why take the bus when I can ride in style?" he thought as he reached into his pocket for the handful of cell medals he had swiped before Ankh noticed them. He activated the transformation function, and was soon on his way, driving his brand new "birthday present" The bike handled like a dream, responding to every move Austin made. This was a problem however, as Austin wasn't very good at driving motorcycles, having a hard time staying balanced. He swerved several times, and was very glad he was alone on the road, for fear any cops might think he was drunk. "That's just what I need to start my senior year off with, a DUI notice" he thought as he pulled into the parking lot at Crown High School. Crown High was a fairly typical school, it had the general teachers who assign too much homework, classes and architecture seemingly purposefully designed to confuse the students, overly observant Assistant Principals, and a Principal that cared only about the sports teams, and left the other students in the dust. Oh, and the dimly lit hallways for that feeling of hopelessness for an extra touch of evil.

Austin walked across the grass, watching all the groups of students go by, each having been friends since they were finger painting. Austin neared one of the large oak trees on the front lawn when he felt something smack into the back of his head. He looked up to see an Asian man sitting in the tree, wearing red jeans, a white t-shirt, and a black leather jacket. His hair was bleached blond and was wavy to one side. "Tch, took you long enough to show up" he said, leaning forward. "Do I know you?" Austin asked cautiously, as the voice did seem familiar. The man held up his right arm, and some cell medals reformed around it, turning into Ankh (or Ankh's right arm, as Austin had to remind himself) "Does _This_ jog your memory" he asked. "Yeah, yeah it does. Where did you get that body from?" Austin asked, keeping an eye out for any AP's or campus security. "Found some guy wandering the streets, liked the look of him, so I copied his form." Ankh replied, munching on a Popsicle. "Another steal?" Austin asked, annoyed that his new friend was stealing. "Sure, why not, these things are pretty good, and they are refreshing for this heat." "Yeah, sorry you had to revived in the middle of Missouri" Austin said, taking note of the heat himself. "Whatever, so you actually bother with this dump?" Ankh asked, clearly not interested. "Yeah, state laws require it!" Austin replied as the bell sounded, screeching through the air. Ankh jumped, clearly not expecting it, and nearly fell out of the tree. Austin couldn't help but smile. "It's just the bell to start school, I'll see you in 6 hours" Austin said as he left his strange new friend in the tree "6 hours?! What am I supposed to do for 6 hours?" he called after Austin, before slumping back onto the limb.

As Austin walked the halls he saw many familiar faces, none he wanted to talk to thought. He tried to ignore them, ignoring the people who thought less of him. However, he felt a fuzzy object being pushed into his face. He found himself with a face full of a pom-pom. "I guess we've started early this year?" he asked, noticing the pom-pom was on the arm of one of the most evil people in the school. "You better believe it Austin" she said, as her friends encircled them. "Shelby, when are you going to give this up?" he asked, not wanting this routine to continue. "Till I make you _drop out_ and I never have to think about you again, geek boy" she said, whacking him in the gut with her purse. Austin fell to his knees, the wind drained from him. "You aren't graduating, nerd" she said as she strutted away, dragging her friends with her.

Austin hated this school. The only reason he even bothered to return this year was that pesky state law. Shelby, being the head female and one of the popular kids had set that unless you worship her, she would make your life miserable. And unfortunately, Austin had ticked her off somehow, so he was now in her sights. The morning passed as usual, no one talked to him, thinking that if queen bee Shelby didn't like him, they shouldn't. He spent both math and English in silence, and then gym class rolled around. One thing hehated about gym, was the boy's locker room. He had to be surrounded by hot, sweaty guys, but he hated it because most of the guys hated him. They had caught Austin staring at one of them last year, and it hadn't ended well.

After the coach finished making the students run the track, Austin left the remaining kids, who were running the track for fun, and made his way to the edge of the field, so he could hide under the shade of the trees there. "So another year begins, huh" a familiar voice said. Austin opened his eyes to see his friend sitting there, wearing her normal puka shell necklace and spikey hair. "Hey Dice" Austin said, nodding his head in acknowledgement. Bethany "Dice" waddle was Austin's friend from Hawaii. The two had been friends since freshman year, as both were outsiders, and decided to band together. However, Junior year seemed to put a wrench in their friendship. Austin was forced to admit his sexual orientation back then by the quarterback. Their friendship had been rocky ever since, with Dice only agreeing to stay friends if Austin never talked about his orientation.

"I just don't get why you didn't like babes!" Dice exploded, apparently shattering that pact. "First off, it's not babes, its girls or women. And second, it's just the way I was born." Austin replied, refusing to look at Dice. "Yeah, but it just seemed so wrong, it don't seem like nature!" Dice said, staying firm in her beliefs. "So you're not only phobic, but you can't speak properly too?" Austin growled, getting up and walking away from Dice. He couldn't stand what Shelby and her boyfriend had done to his friendship with Dice, forcing them apart, making Austin more vulnerable and lonely. Austin leaned up against a fence, trying to get as far away from the rest of the students as possible. "You still want to stay here?" Ankh asked, appearing on the bleachers next to Austin. "Dude, how did you get in here?" he demanded. "Simple, I _flew_" he said, dropping a few red feathers. Austin was about to press further, when he felt the air take a sudden chill. "Oh no" he thought, turning to see Beelzebub herself walking toward him. "Austin, you know, I was just looking through everyone's backpacks, and I found the _strangest_thing in yours" she said, holding up the belt. Ankh suddenly stiffened, his arm turning into his Greeed arm behind his back. "Is this one of those devices used to smoke drugs?" she teased as Austin tried to grab it. "Maybe I should just, turn this into the security office and, watch them haul your sorry ass off school property for good?" Ankh was not happy about this "She has the OOO Driver, the little brat!" he whispered, flexing his fingers behind his back, ready to strike.

"HEY" a loud voice boomed across the field. It couldn't be campus security coming to save them, oh no, Austin knew better. Shelby, little miss mayor's daughter, had the rent-a-cops under her thumb. Instead, Austin looked to see the same fiery red-headed girl who helped him in the zoo the other day. "Leave him alone you SOB" she said, yelling in Shelby's face. "I don't know _who_you think you are, but you have no idea who I..." "Oh shut it Barbie" the girl said, grabbing the newly titled "OOO Driver" from Shelby's hand, and brushed past her. "Oh, my father will _so_hear about this!" she growled, leaving with her gaggle of friends. "Yeah I bet" the girl thought, turning to focus on Austin. "Hey there kid, is this yours?" she asked, immediately changing her tone of voice to sweet and caring. "Yeah, thanks." Austin said, taking the Driver back "You know you just cemented yourself as an outcast, right?" Austin said, cautioning his savior.

"Don't worry, I can handle myself" she said. "Oh, by the way, my name's Kitty, Kitty Gilliland" "Austin, Austin Whitaker, and this is Ankh" he said, gesturing to his feathered friend. "Tch" was Ankh's only response. "You new in town?" he asked "Yeah, my family and I just moved here two weeks ago." She said, fixing her long hair into a ponytail. Austin noticed that some of the kids who had been running the track had dropped off and only one was left, and he seemed to be running _really_fast.

**3 hours ago**

Chris Crawford was a great runner. He loved running track, and, thanks to Ashley Harper, he was able to run track for twice as long as anyone else was allowed to. However, no matter who he defeated, he still felt he could do better, run faster. He wanted to be the fastest man on the planet, and he felt that dream burn deep in his heart.

"That's the perfect kind of _desire_" Kazari thought as he looked on from the sidelines, watching the young man running the track. However, his real target was somewhere inside the building. "OOO, I've got a present for you" he said, twirling his dreadlocks as he hopped over the fence.

Chris continued running around the track, till he stopped for a water break, where he took his pulse, and was too distracted to notice the young man with silver hair approaching him. "Let's see your desire" Kazari said, sliding a cell medal into the young man's forehead. He adjusted his baseball cap as he hoped the nearby fence. "Let's see OOO deal with that" Kazari said as he walked down the street while Chris was being covered in a Yummies bandages.

**Back in the present**

Austin was taking of notice of the man running around the track; he seemed to be running too fast to be human. Suddenly, Ankh heard the sound, the sound of medals collecting inside a Yummy. "That's it, Austin, he's the Yummy!" Ankh yelled, jumping to his feet. "Yummy?" Kitty asked; a confused look on her face. "Uh, no time to explain!" Austin called to her as he and Ankh ran toward the track. Once they made it to the 4 mile long track, they saw a dust cloud approaching them. The dust cleared, and Austin saw one of the Jock boys standing there, with yummy-like bandages all over his body. "What's going on Ankh?" Austin asked, becoming confused "This is a person, not a Yummy." "No, it's a Yummy, that's _inside_ that guy" Ankh said, a hunger appearing over his face "It must be one of Kazari's..." he said, flexing his arm. "Kazari? That's another Greeed, right?" Austin said, putting the belt on his waist. "Yeah, finish this quick, I'm hungry for medals" he said, tossing Austin the three Medals. "Henshin!" Austin yelled, as the three rings encircled him, forming the armor as the belt sang "TATOBA! TA-T-T-T-T-TATOBA!"

"Austin?" Kitty said, seeing the armor forming. "Oh yeah!" he said, striking a pose "Kamen Rider OOO, anything goes!" Once again it seemed, Ankh was not happy with this line "Seriously? Nothing?" Austin asked of the unresponsive Ankh. "Just fight, idiot" Ankh said, shoving Austin back to the battle field. Austin ran toward the Yummy, but as soon as he reached it, Chris had gotten a second wind and taken off, running at top speed again. He tried to intercept it again, but every time, a blur flew by, accompanied by a slashing attack from claws. Austin finally ended up flat on his butt, unable to keep up or counter the Yummies speed. "Tch, here, use this!" Ankh yelled, throwing a new Medal to Austin. When he caught it he saw it was dark grey, with an engraving of an elephant on it. He replaced the Batta medal with it, and the scanner sang "TAKA! TORA! ZOU!" as he slid the ring over the medals. The new, grey ring locked with the red and yellow medals, forming new, dark grey armor on Austin's legs in the shape of elephant heads on his knees.

"Now, STOMP!" Ankh commanded, and Austin saw a glow envelop his legs. He brought his right leg up, and once the Yummy got close enough, he brought his foot crashing down. A shockwave erupted from the impact site that sent everyone in a 30 yd. radius flying (literally for Ankh) and the Yummy, who now seemed to be slightly dizzy. Austin ran up to the Jock, charged up his left leg, and brought it smashing against his left shoulder. The impact of the shock wave ejected the Yummy, revealing it in all its nightmarish glory. "Quickly, switch back to TaToBa and finish it!" Ankh yelled, and Austin returned to his TaToBa form, sliding the ring over the medals and it sane "SCANNING CHARGE!" Austin's legs once again morphed into grasshopper legs, and he jumped straight into the air. He saw the targeting reticle appear on the Yummy, and he began to descend, picking up speed as energy wings and claws appeared around him.

"Yes, it's lunch time!" Ankh thought as OOO descended towards the Yummy. He really wanted those cell medals. His body might be reformed, but the more cell medals he had, the better. However, he became aware of a strange noise coming from behind them. Ankh turned to see a torrent of water rushing towards them. In a matter of seconds, the column of water flooded the entire track, soaking everyone present. But worse still, was that it had thrown Austin off target, and he landed a good 5 yards away from the Yummy.

On the other side of the iron bar fence, Kazari was watching the scene unfold, and turned to see his sister, the Aquatic Greeed, Mezool, standing there. "Just like old times, huh Kazari?" she asked, sashaying past her brother. "I had things under control until _you_ showed up." He hissed, claws growing from his hands. "Sure, and the Yummy being defeated, that was all part of your plan then?" she asked, looking over her shoulder. "For your information, I was _about_to save it." He said, hissing just like a cat "Well, as long as that's what you think, that's what counts." Mezool said, patting his head. "And you can do better?" Kazari asked, challenging her. "I can, and I will." She said, reforming her body into that of a Japanese school girl wearing a blue dress. "This will distract him" she thought, watching OOO recovering.

When Austin regained his bearings, he found that the Yummy was gone. He was expecting to feel the sharp sting of Ankh's claws digging into him, but instead he saw the Greeed standing by the fence. "You're, not mad I let your meal get away?" Austin asked, keeping his distance. "No, it wasn't your fault, _this time_"he said, turning his head. "It was Mezool, she was here, there was no way you could have known that" Austin felt relieved as he transformed back "But if you better not screw up again!" Ankh hissed, grabbing Austin by the throat. "I won't dude, just, just let me go!" Austin begged, as Ankh released his grip.

"What's going on here?" a gruff voice yelled across the track. Austin looked up to see one of the campus guards walking over to him. "Oh, Officer I..." Austin began, but was cut off by a sickingly sweet voice. "That's him officer, that's the boy who hurt poor Chris" Shelby said, pointing a finger at Austin. "No, wait officer," Kitty said, jumping between the two. "You don't understand, Austin here was just trying to..." "To sabotage our chances of winning against our major rival in the track run off?" the guard asked, and Austin felt whatever ray of hope dim from his heart. "And I suppose you were his lookout eh?" he asked of Kitty" "But wait, Ankh will..." Kitty started, trying to look for Ankh, but as Austin knew, the Greeed was nowhere to be found

"Oh, you are so going _down_" Shelby whispered as the guard hauled Austin and Kitty off to some unknown fate.

**Meanwhile, in Kougami's office**

The CEO was watching the scene unfold on his Monitor, clearly not happy with what was happening. A voice on the intercom fizzled into life "Mr. Kougami, Mr. Gotou is here to see you" "SUBARASHII" Kougami cried. "Send him in at once." "You have a plan boss?" Ms. Satonaka asked, looking up from her magazine. "Yes, but we must act quickly." He said as the double doors opened. A young man entered. (The same man in fact who had activated the Bird robots during OOO's first fight) "You wanted to see me sir?" he asked, bowing in greeting. "Yes, bring my car around; we need to go on a rescue mission!" Kougami said as he walked toward the door. "You have the papers, Ms. Satonaka?" he asked "Yes sir, they are right here." She said, holding up a small file folder. With a quick nod from their boss, the two followed him out of the office.

Count the Medals:

Taka X2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X3

Batta

Tora

Zou

Unagi, Tako

**All credit of this story goes ****to** **LiamX315**


	4. The Trap

**In the Principal's Office**

"I can't believe you, you miscreants would do something like this!" the principal said, under the weight of his giant, furry mustache. AS he talked, Kitty kept picturing a giant walrus. "Now, when I return with the papers, we _will_discuss your punishment" he said as he walked out of the room. "Man, I can't believe how evil that Shelby is!" Kitty whined as she flopped down on one of the leather couches in the office, still dripping wet from Mezool's attack. "Why does she hate you so much?" Kitty asked, looking quizzically at Scott. "I-I'd prefer not to talk about it" Austin said, as he suddenly got a flashback

_A ten year old Austin was lying on the side of a cliff, tears streaming down his eyes. He heard the faint sound of police__cars__. In his small hand was a bracelet, blood smeared on it. Voices were drawing closer..."_

"No, NO!" Austin thought, forcing the memories from his mind. He noticed that he had broken out in a cold sweat, and was holding the bracelet on his right arm, the same one from the flashback. "Dude, are you ok?" Kitty asked as she got up, crossing to his side. "Yeah, yeah I'm fine." He said, sitting down on the floor, holding his head his hands. Kitty decided not to press further, worried of losing her new friend. The door knob turned and both of them jumped to their feet. The principal walked in, holding official looking papers in his hands. "Now, for this serious attack against the spirit of our school," the principal said as he filled the papers out "...Will be the maximum punishment, expulsion." The two teen's eyes widened as much as possible, they couldn't believe it, their first day of Senior Year, and both were about to be expelled.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" a booming voice yelled as the door burst open once again. Scott recognized this new comer to be the man who had given him his sword and Tako medal. But what was he doing here? And in person! "Sir I do beg your pardon!" the principal stammered, taken as off guard as was, who had jumped onto a book case. "Sir, I do believe you are about to make a costly mistake!" Kougami said as Ms. Satonaka entered. She crossed to the principal's desk, took the expulsion papers, and dropped them into the fish tank behind him. "Wha-what is the meaning of this?" he said, clearly flustered. "And who are you?" "I, I am Kosei Kougami, CEO of Kougami Industries." He said, standing in front of the principal. "But, but why are _you_ here?" the principal asked, quivering, with what Scott guessed to be fear. "Mr. Kougami does not want his two newest employees to miss out on their education because of a minor incident such as this" Ms. Satonaka said as she sat on another couch in the office, folding her legs.

"But, these two, ruffians, they attacked a star athlete, just to sabotage our chances at state!" the principal said, pointing a finger at the two accused. "Now sir, I don't feel that to be a suitable reason behind your decision for expelling these two." Kougami said, sitting on the arm of a couch. "There is no evidence against Ms. O'Shaughnessy, and according to Mr. Ericson's records, you seem to have a habit for blaming him for every little problem the football team or the cheer leading team has" Kougami said, crossing his arms. "Fine, the girl can stay." The principal said, looking defeated. "But Austin must be expelled" "No, that's not happening, for you see, in the contracts for these two, it is required that they receive an education until the point they graduate." Kougami said, a sly grin appearing on his face. The principal looked stunned. He had never been placed in this kind of situation before. The one thing he kept asking himself, who was he more afraid of, this man or _him_?

The door burst open for a third time, and Shelby marched into the room, her face positively _scarlet_with rage. "Why haven't you expelled these two yet? /!" She demanded. "We have been waiting in the lobby with cameras and popcorn for two HOURS!" She screamed, not even noticing Kougami. "And who are these people?" She demanded, pointing over her shoulder. "Mr. Kougami and Ms. Satonaka, who are employers for Austin and Kitty, and require they remain in school, and that this argument is null and void" he said, pointing to the papers crumbling in his fish tank. "This is bull!" she shrieked, "My father is the mayor, and you _have_to do what he says!" "True, but Mr. Kougami has more authority than your father, so Austin and Kitty are to remain in school." Shelby then emitted a sound that seemed a cross between a bat ping and a pig squeal, with a pitch high enough to cause all the dogs in the surrounding 50 miles to go deaf.

**Outside**

Ankh was sitting in the tree, waiting for Austin to leave school. He was still drying off from the water attack. He had heard the most interesting sound come from the building, sounding like a tea kettle being strangled while boiling, when he noticed a man in a black jump suit standing next to a limo he had seen the man from earlier get out of with a woman. He watched as they left, and the man got on one of the Ride Vendors, as he learned they were called. He suddenly remembered where he had seen that man before. He had seen him in the shadows when the bird robots stole the cell medals from Austin's first fight. He was about to pursue them when he heard the same shrieking bell he had heard six hours ago, thought this time he did fall out of the tree, and when he regained his balance, he saw Austin walking up, a look of utter amusement on his face.

"Not. One. Word." He said as Austin and the girl from earlier had reached him. "So what's our next adventure, team?" Kitty asked, putting her arms over the two men's shoulders. "Uh, I'm sorry, but I don't need dead weight dragging us down." Ankh hissed, shoving her arm away. "Wait, Ankh, she did save the driver." Austin protested, not wanting to have to fight by himself. "No, don't worry, it's cool" Kitty said, walking away from them. "My rides here anyways" she said as she got into a pick-up truck that had just driven up. "So what _is_our next move?" Austin asked as he watched Ankh hop back into the tree. "You go about your business, and I search for that Yummy" he said as his energy wings sprouted and he took flight.

"Great, some partnership" Austin thought, as he grabbed his cell phone and proceeded to call his girlfriend. _Hola, you_'ve _reached Samantha Rodriguez, leave a message at the beep,_said the familiar, rich voice Austin heard whenever he was with Sam. "Hey Sam, it's me, Austin, schools out, and well, we're going to go out tonight, so, I'm just waiting for you." He said. Turns out, Austin was left waiting 45 minutes, when he got a text from Sam, saying he couldn't get away from work. Depressed, Austin resolved to walk home, as he removed his black vest, the Missouri heat setting in.

**1 hour later**

Austin lay in his bed, looking up at the ceiling. He couldn't figure out what was up with Sam. This wasn't the first time she had backed out of a date. Over the course of their dating history, Sam had seemed to miss out on almost half of them. She always seemed to be busy at work, which Austin had debunked once. On day, he had decided to surprise his girlfriend at work, but when he went to the address Sam had given him, he had found an abandoned factory, which hadn't been used in decades. Sam hadn't even let him see her house. Austin was about to text him again, when he heard a rapping at his window. He pulled the curtains open to see one of the robotic birds there. It seemed to be waiting for him to follow it.

"D-Did Ankh send you?" he asked, and the bird seemed to node in agreement. "Guess he found the Yummy" Austin thought, racing outside. As he was racing after the bird-bot on a ride vendor, he saw a familiar Harley Chopper on the freeway. "Where was Sam going now?" he thought, realizing he had to worry about stopping the yummy first when the bird squawked at him. He drove up to the local sports dome where he saw a giant fireball erupt from inside. He raced inside, and as he emerged at the top of the bleachers, he saw the Cheetah Yummy fighting Ankh in his true form, and Ankh wasn't doing so hot. "Couldn't wait to start the party without me?" Austin yelled, placing the belt on his waist. "Finally, thought that Candroid got lost" Ankh snarled as he tossed a trio of medals to Austin. "Huh, so those are what they're called" Austin thought as he placed the medals and scanned them. "TAKA! UNAGI! ZOU!" the scanner cried, locking the red, blue and dark grey rings together, forming the armor.

"Let's rock!" Austin said as he dropped down onto the field, charging his legs. He struck the ground, but the Yummy jumped! "Crap!" Austin cried, brandishing the Unagi Whips, trying to catch it. However, it managed to enter super speed mode again, dodging the whips, and even managed to tie Austin up in them. "I wonder if this partnership is really working out." Ankh said, sitting on the sidelines, back in his human form. Austin heard a girl screaming suddenly. He managed to untangle himself to see the yummy harassing a school girl. "Hey, leave her alone!" Austin yelled, running up to the scene. He grabbed the Yummy and managed to throw it off. "Are you ok?" he asked the girl. "Yeah, I'm fine" she said, placing a hand on Austin's arm "But you, not so much!" she laughed, sending an electric pulse straight through Austin. Austin fell to the ground, and he saw the girl stand up, and reform into a Greeed. "Mezool?" he said, not really asking a question. "But of course, OOOs Boy" she said, advancing on him.

**Meanwhile, not far away**

Kitty had seen the Fire ball from where she was working at her father's diner, and was making her way through the inner maze of the sports dome. "Geez, who is this designed for, people or lab mice?" she asked to no one in particular. When she finally emerged into the arena, she saw that Ankh was sitting on one of the bleachers, watching OOO saving a random girl from the creature from earlier. Just as he had thrown the creature off, the girl transformed into a monster too, and attacked him. "Shit!" Kitty yelled as she started running back down the stairs. "I have to get help!" she thought, bursting into the fresh air. Suddenly, she heard the sound of a motor cycle approaching. She ran out into the street, attempting to flag down the incomer. "Help please!" she cried as the bike came to a halt in front of her.

**Back in the Sports Dome**

Mezool was advancing on OOO, as the Yummy was keeping Ankh busy, who had attempted to save Austin. "Well, well, well," she said, looking at the OOO Driver. "Looks like I get a toofer today" she said as she plucked the Unagi and Zou medals, returning Austin to normal. "Ha-ha!" she cried, as she seemed to eat the medals, "Now, to finish you off and we never have to worry about OOO again!" she chuckled, raising her fist, ready to strike. Austin prepared for the final blow, when the sound of a shot gun blast filled the stadium. When Austin opened his eyes, he saw that a whole had been made in Mezool (which was slowly being healed by cell medals) and on the other side, holding the shot gun in question, was a woman. Standing at 6' 7'', her slender muscles covered with a tight, sleeveless t-shirt. Her tan was glistening in the sun. Austin's face lit up when he saw his girlfriend standing there, having saved his life. "What, but, my Medals!" Mezool screamed, still holding her wound. Her legs seemed to shimmer, as the armor on them broke away, reveling her to look more like a blank yummy. Austin looked down to see that in a pile of cell medals were three blue medals; two Unagi medals, and a navy blue medal Austin hadn't seen before. As Austin held the three medals in his hand, he had just enough time to see that the new medal had the engraving of an orca on it when Ankh's right hand swooped over and grabbed them. "Nice kid, we got a good payout today!' Ankh said as he reattached himself to his body. "This isn't over OOO, I will be back!" Mezool cried as she turned into a cloud of cell medals and flew away. Before any of them had a chance to breathe, the Cheetah Yummy jumped over their heads and hissed, baring its fangs.

"Finish it off kid" Ankh commanded, flicking the main medals to Austin. "You're gonna see something, baby" he said, smiling at Sam, who smiled back. "Henshin!" "TAKA! TORA! BATTA!" "TATOBA, TA-T-T-T-T-TATOBA!" the scanner sang as the armor appeared over him "Dios Mio" Sam gasped, marveling the armor her boyfriend was now wearing. However, as Austin charged the Yummy, it started running in circles, creating a dust storm from the dirt track it was running. "How's Austin going to find that thing in that dust Diablo" Sam asked, lost as to what was going on. "Maybe, this one...?" Ankh wondered aloud, holding up the new medal. "Austin! Use this!" he yelled, tossing the new medal to him. Austin was surprised when he caught it. "A single stripe? That means it's a head medal!" he thought as he swapped out the Taka medal for this new one. The scanner sang something new "SHACHI! TORA! BATTA!" as a new, blue ring locked with the yellow and green one. Austin felt his new helmet, feeling what appeared to be fins sticking out of it. He looked to the side and saw its reflection in the chrome. The new helmet had a streamlined design, with yellow eyes instead of green ones. "Alright, quit checking yourself out and fight it!" Kitty said, pushing Austin toward the dust storm.

"Let's see what this can do" he thought, when suddenly his eyes switched to a thermal vision-type view. He saw the Yummy spinning in the center, and he saw a high pressure stream of water shoot out the crystal on his helmet, hitting the Yummy square in the chest. The dust storm began to subside as the yummy was drenching, when the scanner sang out "SCANNING CHARGE!" as OOO leapt through the wall of dust, still spraying the Yummy with water, his legs in the shape of grasshopper legs. The Tora claws where glowing and generating wind, as Austin sliced through the Yummy. The yummy staggered as the claw marks glowed for a few seconds, before exploding into a shower of cell medals.

"Well, who's the man?" Austin asked as he reverted to normal. "Yeah buddy!" Kitty said as she got ready to high five him as Ankh was busy with the cell medals. However, Sam suddenly wrapped Austin in his arms, and their lips connected. Kitty was stunned, she hadn't seen this coming. "Hey uh, buddy?" she asked, getting Austin's attention "that's a _little_forward" "Kitty, it's cool, this is Sam, my girlfriend." He said, as her face turned slightly red.

**Meanwhile, in an abandoned Bar**

Mezool staggered into the room, junk cluttered the floor as she fell into one of the booths and turned into her human form. "So, how did it go?" a smug voice asked, and she turned to see Kazari standing over her in his human form. "Shut it Kazari, I'm not in the mood" "MEZOOL!" a panicked voice yelled as a man wearing a grey muscle shirt ran over, pushing Kazari out of his way. "Gamel, my brother" she said, stroking his face "Mezool, did he do this? Did OOO do this?" he asked, through his tears. "Yes" she said, catching her breath. "I will smash him!" Gamel yelled, transforming into his Greeed form. "Please, that's the lamest idea I've heard" Kazari said, hopping onto the bar changing into his true form. "No, it may actually work." A new character said. The man was wearing a green jacket. "Uva, thank you" Gamel said, bowing. "Gamel, dear" Mezool said sitting up. "I managed to get one of yours back" she said, holding up his Zou medal. "No, you keep it, you need all the strength you can get" he said, putting the medal back in her hand.

"Yeah, this may just work" Uva thought as he transformed back into his Greeed form. "And this time, I'll be ready" he smirked as he crushed a fist full of cell medals, breaking them in half.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X3

Batta

Tora

Shachi, Unagi X2, Tako

**All credit of this story goes ****to** **LiamX315**


	5. The Marine Combo

**The Internet Rumor, the Best Friend, and the Marine Combo**

**The next day**

Thanks to Kougami's intervention, Austin and Kitty were allowed to remain in school. Austin seemed to be on Cloud 9, while Austin mainly felt relieved. It still didn't stop all the dirty looks from the jocks, but with the way things had been going, he didn't really care. After fighting as OOO, Austin seemed to improve in his outlook on life. Today, the two were sitting through a history lecture, listening to the teacher ramble on about the French-Indian war, when a new conversation caught Kitty's attention. "...I wonder what he calls himself?" a blond haired girl asked a boy sitting next to her, who was wearing giant headphones. They were watching something on the boy's Internet phone, an image that was obscured by the girl's frizzy hair. "I don't know, but with those colors, everyone's calling him Traffic Light man" he said, and the girl's hair parted just long enough for her to see OOO flash onto the screen, during his fight in the stadium. Her eyes widened and she kicked Austin in the shin. "Ow" he hissed, turning to look at her. "Look at the screen" she whispered. He looked at the phone to see himself switching into ShaToraBa form. "I know about it" he said, returning to his book.

"Don't you think it's a big deal?" she asked him as they sat at a lunch table when they met up again during lunch. "Not really, I have enough attention thanks to Shelby, imagine what would happen if they found out I was OOO?" he asked as his sandwich was swiped out of his hands. "Thanks for getting my lunch Austin" Shelby said, taking a bite from it "Ew, how can you eat this?" she asked, throwing in on the ground. "Because it's what the school is serving" Austin said, her hand clinching on her soda. "Not for us" Shelby responded. "Casey, what are we having?" she asked one of her underlings. "Shrimp Cocktails" the girl to Shelby's right answered. "Anyway, I came over to tell you guys that I'm having a party in honor of Crown City's newest civil servant, Traffic Light man, and you two, are NOT invited" Shelby said, nearly spitting in their faces. "That's not his name" Kitty said, ready to strike. "Huh, and how do you know?" she asked, her eyes narrowing. "Just a feeling I guess" Kitty responded after getting a glare from Austin. "Well, that's what his Wikipedia entry says, and Wikipedia doesn't lie" Shelby said as she held up her phone. "And what do you mean, 'civil servant'?" Austin asked, wondering when he had joined the police department. "Oh, my daddy wants him on his _personal_security detail," "and if he refuses?" Austin asked, already knowing where this was going. "Jail, hmph" Shelby said as she strutted away from the duo. "Well, at _least_ she can't kick us out anymore" Kitty said. "Yeah, but she'll try to find a way around it." Austin answered. "She already has a way to throw me in jail if OOO doesn't go to work for her dad" "Yeah, but we work for Kougami" Kitty said, tearing into her ice cream. "He can get us out of this"

"Oh that's right, didn't Ankh give you your own set of medals?" she asked, remembering the events after they parted ways the previous day

"_Here, so you can transform if I'm not around" Ankh called to Scott as he tossed him three medals. Austin caught them, to find the Shachi, Tora and Batta medals in his hand. "Don't lose them!" Ankh called as he took flight._

"Yeah, he did" Austin replied, feeling them in his left pocket. "Hey, can I sit here?" a familiar voice asked. Austin looked up to see Dice there. "Sure we were done anyway" he said, getting up, leering at his "friend" Austin got up after him as Dice sat down, and looked devastated. "Hey, that was no way to treat your friend" Austin protest as she caught up with him. "What friend?" Austin quipped as they sat down on the grass. "Come on, what happened between you guys?" Austin asked, joining him. "Last year, I was changing in the locker room, and this guy walked in. His name is Dominic. He was always the one jock who never seemed to have an issue with me. Anyway, his friends caught me staring at him, and they_kinda_forced me to come out." Austin said, twirling a blade of grass. "They laughed at me for hours, and Dice, well, when i tried to talk to her, she just looked at me shocked, and said 'How can you do this to me? I thought you were my friend!' and she walked away, and i didn't talk to her for 5 months." Austin finished, lying on his back. "That little prick" Austin said, shooting eye daggers in her direction. "She said the only way we could remain friends was if I never talked about the true me back then ever again." "Oh, you should totally go OOO on his ass!" Kitty growled, still glaring in his direction. Austin smiled at the thought as he gazed up at the clouds, watching them roll by. That is, until a red feather fell on his face. "Ankh?" Kitty asked, taking note of the feather. "Yeah, I think he's still getting used to his wings. They are kinda new after all." He said as he saw his bird friend flying through the sky.

**After School**

Actually, Austin was worried about all the attention OOO was getting. He had always wanted to be a super hero, but never actually thought about the attention it would bring him. As he walked by a wall of TV's, he saw a news program running a story on OOO, revealing they had tapped into the security footage at all of the locations of Scott's fights, though luckily they hadn't been filming when he was transforming. Unfortunately, the reporter seemed to confirm the lie that OOO was a guardian to the mayor

**Across town**

Gamel was walking through the streets, trying to find OOO. "He will pay for what he did to Mezool!" he thought as he munched on some potato chips he swiped from a vendor. At least he had crippled Ankh earlier. He had caught his brother in a tree, where the two fought till he managed to steal back Mezool's medal and a few of from Ankh himself. He held the medals in triumph as he walked down the street, preparing to give them to Mezool. He suddenly heard a faint sound saying "TAKA! UNAGI! ZOU!" "OOO!" Gamel yelled as he heard the sound of the belt transforming. He ran for several blocks till he found the source of the noise. It was another TV display, running the same report. His anger was boiling over, till he slotted a cell medal into his _own_forehead. Suddenly, a fully formed yummy fell out of his back. "We're gonna get OOO!" He told his Yummy, and the two set off.

**Back with Austin**

Austin was walking down the street when he saw a crowd of people fleeing. "Here we go again!" he thought as he put the medals into the belt. "Henshin!" he cried as the scanner sang "SHACHI! TORA! BATTA!" He ran into the plaza to see a Yummy smashing all the TV's that were displaying the OOO's story "Huh, this one's fully formed" he thought as he activated the Tora Claws. He slashed with them, only to have them bounce off the Yummy. It turned around and Austin saw it was Armadillo based. "Oh great, a strong shell, this will end well" he said as it brought up a fist. Suddenly, the crystal on the Shachi helmet glowed and Austin let loose a high pitched sonic wail, which shattered all the glass in the area. Austin saw his opening, and got ready to strike with the sword, when suddenly he heard a voice yell "Look, its Traffic Light man!" "Oh shit" Austin thought, "here comes the attention again" as the bright lights of camera flashes went off all around him.

"Traffic Light man, over here!"

"Why are you wearing a different costume?"

"Can you sign my notebook?"

Everyone kept barraging him with questions; Austin didn't know what to do, when he felt a giant blow delivered to the back of his head. The Armadillo Yummy had smashed him, and was getting ready to deliver another hit when the familiar shot gun blast went off, tearing a whole in the Yummy's armor. Austin turned to see Sam standing there; only she was wearing a helmet, obscuring her face. She also had new biker-type clothes. "Hey OOO, looks like you could use a hand" she said, lifting Austin to his feet. The crowd murmured about this new name. "Here dude, I think Cake man wants you to have this" he said, putting something in Austin's hand. It was a new medal, a grey one that had a carving of a gorilla face on it. "How did you..." Austin asked as Sam put a hand on his shoulder. "Cake man gave it to me in, well, a cake. Nearly ate it too" she said, reloading the shot gun. Austin grinned as he placed the new medal in the center slot. The scanner sang "SHACHI! GORIRA! BATTA!" as the new grey ring locked with the navy and green rings. Giant, silver gauntlets appeared on his arms. "Aw yeah!" he yelled as he attacked the Yummy again. The new fists improved his punching power, enabling him to hurt the Yummy. However, before he could activate the scanning charge, the Yummy turned into a ball and rolled down a street, away from the two.

"Huh, guess it had an appointment" Sam said as the two used the confusion of the moment to run from the fans. The made it to a back alley, where they took a chance to catch their breath. Sam threw the jacket and helmet in his backpack while Austin turned the OOO Driver. "Wait, wait, mister Traffic Light man!" a voice called, the same voice that had exposed him when the fight started. Austin turned around as the last of the armor vanished to leave normal in front of...Dice. "Dice, what are you doing here?" Austin yelled as the girl had the same expression on her face as when his _other_ secret was revealed. "Why do you have to keep ruining things for me?" she asked, tears in her face as he turned around and ran away. The two stood in silence before a Taka Candroid swooped overhead and dropped something at their feet. It was another Candroid, in the shape of a Grasshopper. "Guys, Guys!" Kitty's voice yelled through the robot. "Is this a new one?" Austin asked as he lifted the robot up. "Yeah, you guys need to get to 67th street, fast!" she said, urgency in her voice.

**Twenty Minutes later**

Austin and Sam arrived at the location, and saw Kitty holding an injured Ankh. He was in his true form, but his legs were lacking their armor, much like how Mezool's were. The only difference was that his were purple. "Gamel, attacked me" he said as they approached. "He needs cell medals; tell me you got some from the Yummy!" Kitty asked; urgency in her voice. "Shoot, I forgot to grab any" Austin said, thinking back to the fight. "Actually, I don't think there were any" Sam said, a look of confusion on her face. "There wouldn't be" Ankh said as he stood up, regaining his human form, "Gamel's Yummies are made from himself, we'd be lucky to get even one cell medal." Ankh said as he started walking. "Poor idiot can't even feed himself" "Wait, where are you going?" Austin asked, running to catch up. "I heard the medal rattling around, it's on the attack again" he said. The others exchanged looks before getting on their own ride vendors, following Ankh.

**The Mayor's office**

The mayor's aid was stepping outside of his office to grab a smoke as he often did. He was thinking about the meeting coming up that day, hoping OOO was one of them. "I really could use that boy on the force" he thought as he exhaled a cloud of smoke. He was too busy, wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice that Gamel and the Armadillo Yummy were behind him, until it was too late. He was suddenly slammed against the wall by the pair, as Gamel yelled in his face. "Where's OOO? /!" he demanded, slamming his fist into the wall. "H-How should I know?" he stammered, his cigar falling to the ground. "Because he WORKS FOR YOU!" Gamel cried at the top of his lungs.

A whir of engines sounded as four Ride Vendors rounded the corner (Ankh had wanted to fly but his loss of medals left his wings a little frail). Unfortunately, the four had gotten there a little late, as the news crew and onlookers had already gathered "You better transform, fast!" Kitty called to Austin, who nodded in agreement. "Here, use this!" Ankh called, tossing the Taka medal to him. "Henshin!" Austin cried, as the rings appeared around him, locking the red, yellow and green rings together as the scanner cried "TAKA! TORA! BATTA! TATOBA! TA-T-T-T-T-TATOBA!" The armor appeared around him, which was interesting to experience while he was driving. The crowd cheered, and Austin felt ticked off as the crowd cheered for Traffic Light man.

"My name is OOO, Kamen Rider OOO!" he yelled to them, who seemed stunned to learn that this was his name. "OOO!" Gamel yelled as he ran towards Austin, swinging a massive fist at him. Gamel was powerful, so Austin kept his distance, but luckily, his power and weight made his attacks slow, and easy to dodge. That is, except the Armadillo yummy was making up for the disadvantage. The others ran to Austin's aid, only for a group of 12 White Yummies appeared, blocking their path. "How could these many be made?" Austin asked, shocked at their opposition. "Don't worry, these are Pseudo-Yummies, they won't get farther than this stage" Ankh explained as he charged at one, striking with his claws. Austin and Sam just shrugged as they charged into battle, and Sam tossed a hand gun to Kitty. However, while they might not be true Yummy, the pseudos' were still pretty tough. Kitty was knocked flat on her back by one, and when she got up, she saw Dice standing to the side, watching the events unfold.

"What are you doing here you little punk?" She asked, grabbing him by the shirt. "You hate him, so why did you come back?" "I, I don't know!" Dice cried, tears streaming down her face. Before Kitty could ask anything else, a Pseudo Yummy grabbed her, pulling her back into the fight. Austin was having a tough time dealing with the Yummy-Greeed duo, not able to keep up with the two of them. He tried to counter by switching into TakaGoriBa form, but Gamel responded by delivering a gut punch that knocked him into a building. Austin lay in the middle of a SUV sized hole, as he saw the Greeed advancing. Gamel brought his fist up, ready to deliver the final blow. Austin was about to close his eyes, when he saw a flash of steel fly by, planting itself square in Gamel's chest. Austin looked up to see who his savior was, and saw Dice standing there, holding the other end of the Shovel currently embedded into Gamel. "Dice, what the hell are you doing?" Austin asked as he got to his feet. "No one hurts my best friend" she said, a look of guilt on her face. Austin just stared. He couldn't make heads or tails of this guy.

"Austin, quick the medals!" Ankh yelled as he planted his claws in a pseudo Yummy. Austin saw a pile of medals at Gamel's feet, two new grey ones, and a new _red_ one. The grey ones had an engraving of a Rhino on them, and the red one had a different non-descript bird on it than the Taka medal. He put the medals in the holder on his left side and Gamel woke up, pulling the shovel out of his chest. "That didn't kill it?" Dice asked, lost for words. "Not even close" Austin replied, getting ready to fight. "Uh, I'll be back OOO" Gamel yelled as he ran towards an alley before turning into a swarm of cell medals. Austin suddenly noticed a feeling in his right arm. He turned to see that Dice was holding it. "S-Sorry" she said, breaking away, his face red. "Austin, we've got a problem!" Sam yelled as the two turned to see that the Yummy was swarming with energy.

It began to grow with enormous size, until it was the same size as the Ant Yummy Austin fought before. "How are we gonna fight that thing?" Dice asked, as everyone turned to look at him as if to say "And you're a member of this team _how_?" "Don't worry, I know something that might help" Ankh said as he summoned three medals. They were all three blue medals. "All three blue's at once?" Austin asked, as Sam looked over her shoulder. "It will grant you an incredible power, but it may leave you spent" he said, holding the three medals. "Austin turned to see the Armadillo Yummy tearing through the streets, a literal wrecking ball. "Let's give it a shot" he said as he took the three medals, placing them in the belt. He ran the scanner over them and it sang; "SHACHI! UNAGI! TAKO!" SHA-SHA-SHAUTA! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA!" as all three blue pieces of armor locked together with a splash of energy water. Austin was admiring this new form until he felt a spike of energy. "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH" he cried as waves of energy erupted from the symbol, knocking everyone back.

Once Austin got used to the overwhelming energy, he felt a new power activate in the armor; his body instantly transmutated into pure water. "How did he do that?" Dice asked, shocked. No one answered her, as no one knew how it had happened. Austin rose up into the air, and began to fly with the column of water, chasing after the Yummy. He caught up with it in no time, and as he drew level with it he activated the Tako legs to strike it, acting like a buzz saw. He then jumped onto its back, and used the Unagi whips like a harness, and he steered it away from the buildings, using the tentacles to stay attached. As the Yummy reached an open area in the form of a beach, Austin used the Shachi head to fire a sonic pulse, paralyzing the Yummy. He landed on the beach and ran the scanner over the medals. "SCANNING CHARGE!" it sang, as Austin jumped in a pillar of water again, and then grabbed the Yummy with the whips, electrocuting it, while he reeled it in, lifting it off the ground. His legs split again; though this time they bent over his legs, and began to spin at high speeds, almost like a drill.

He made contact with the Yummy, drilling straight through it. He landed in a shower of exactly one cell medal, and saw his friends approaching. He was about to rush to meet them, when a surge of pain coursed through his whole body. The pain clinched his chest, and he fell to the ground. The armor shimmered as it vanished and Austin felt his muscles relax a little, but they still ached. Sam ran over and held his upper body up. "Dude, dude, are you okay _mi amour_?" he asked. "Y-yeah" Austin wheezed, the air returning to his lungs. "I warned you" Ankh said as he approached Austin, picking the medals up off the sandy beach, "They would leave you spent." Kitty and Sam helped Austin to his feet, and the group set off to return to Austin's house, with Dice in tow.

**At Kougami's office**

Kougami was once again, watching the fight unfold on his big screen TV. "He's improving, but he still has a long ways to go" he said as he watched Scott collapse onto the sand while he was working on another cake. However, Kougami was not the only one watching the fight...

**In an unknown office**

A man sat behind a desk, sipping Brandy from a glass, both of which were _very_ expensive. The room he was in seemed to fill the room with an air of exclusiveness. He was watching the scene on his computer, a state of the art machine that wasn't due to be released for another two years. He watched OOO fighting, a smile escaped his lips. "Well, looks like he's back" the man said, as he got up. He crossed to wall safe and punched in the combination as he placed his fingers on the Biometric lock. As the door opened he pulled out an antique box with an old fashioned lock on it. He sat back at his desk, and used a key that was on a string around his neck to undo the lock. He reached inside and pulled something out.

"But, can he deal with the horrors that I have in store for him? He asked, opening his hand to reveal a purple medal, with an engraving of a pterodactyl on it. He sat it on the desk, next to a picture of him with his daughter, Shelby.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Batta

Tora

Sai X2, Gorira

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

**All credit of this story goes ****to** **LiamX315**


	6. ShaUTa on the Rocks

**The Love Triangle, the Jock, and the Evil Plan**

After the Armadillo Yummy's attack, the group returned to Austin's house so he could recover, the ShaUTa combo had taken a lot out of him. Kitty and Sam were talking in the Kitchen, and Ankh was looking around the living room, munching on a Popsicle he found in the freezer. Dice just sat on the couch, looking comatose. Finally Ankh had had enough. He hopped up onto the arm of the sofa, glaring at Dice. "Hey, Kid" he said, his eyes sharp like a hawks', "Austin says you're a real jerkass, so why did you save him back there?" "Yeah, you hate Austin" Kitty offered as she walked in from the kitchen, munching on an apple, while Sam went upstairs to check on Scott. "I-I don't hate him" Dice said, looking up, "I-I love him"

"EH?" Austin squeaked in response, and Ankh's eye just twitched. "You love him?" he asked, not understanding the situation, "But he always said you asked why he could be your friend and stuff!" "Yeah, I was asking why he could be staring at other guys." "And the ruined everything comment?" Austin asked, chucking her apple in the trash can. "I meant my dream of the two of us being together, and I had wanted to get to know OOO, but..." "But OOO is Austin" Kitty finished understanding the situation. She crossed to the couch and sat next to Dice, putting an arm around her. "I know you may like him, but he and Sam are kinda an Item now, and I don't think you can come between them." "I know, I just can't help myself around him." Dice whined, turning to Kitty, "He's so different from all the other guys at school, he was the only one who notice me" "You humans truly are weird" Ankh said as he got up to get another Popsicle.

**Upstairs**

Austin opened his eyes, his muscles still aching from the combo. He rolled over, and saw the smiling face of his girlfriend lying next to him. "Hey baby" he said, kissing him. "Hey, how did I do?" he asked. Sam smiled and held up the single cell medal he won. "Yep, I did it then." He said, rolling on his back. He was lying in his bed, he didn't remember getting here, but he guessed the others had brought him here. Sam rolled on top of them, and the two returned to making out. "Think maybe we can have that date now?" Austin asked, hopefully. "ah, sorry buddy, but I've got to go to work later." Sam said, leaning in to continue making out, but Austin pulled away. "Dude, I went to that address you gave me" Austin said, and Sam sat up, trying to look away. "You weren't supposed to" She said, her eyes shifty. "Just tell me what's going" Austin yelled, getting up from the bed. "You've missed half of our dates to 'work', but the place you work at, doesn't exist! Just tell me the truth!" "I can't!" Sam said, whimpering. "Please, just trust me!" Sam said, getting to her feet, trying to put her arms around Austin, who just brushed him off. "Why could you possibly not tell me?" Austin asked, folding his arms. "I should just go" Sam quickly said, clutching her right arm. "Yeah, yeah I think you should" Austin said, opening the door for her.

**Downstairs**

Kitty was still consoling Dice, when Sam walked down, holding her right arm. "Everything ok up there?" Austin asked, causing Sam to jump. "Yeah, every things fine" she said, turning to face them. "We heard yelling" Ankh said, only mildly interested "Just, a, little...lover's quarrel" Sam said as she left, still clutching her arm. "What was that about?" Ankh said, as Dice suddenly got a hopeful look on her face. "Whoa, down girl!" Kitty commanded "It's just a little fight, all couples go through it, doesn't mean they're breaking up" she said, bringing Dice back to earth.

Once Sam was outside, she looked down at her right arm. It was twitching and being covered in black smoke. She quickly dialed a number on her cell phone. "Sir, you told me to call you if there was any change? Well, there's been a big one" she said, as a voice on the other end of the conversation told her to report to his office.

**At the Greeed's hideout**

Gamel was stacking the chairs into a random order, trying to pass the time till Mezool woke up. She was lying in a booth off to the side, recuperating. Two hours ago he had returned from his fight with OOO and successfully gave her the extra medals he had snatched from Ankh, at the cost of a few of his own. As he was getting to the third row of chairs, the door swung open and Kazari entered, looking smug. "So, not even the mighty Gamel could take OOO down?" he said, chastising the Greeed. "He had back up" Gamel said, pouting. "Well, looks like I get to for another round!" Kazari said as he strolled out the door.

**The Mayor's Office**

Sam sat in a leather chair, in the middle of a very spacious office. It was very dark, except for the single light being shown on her. "So it has begun?" a mysterious voice asked. "Yes sir, it seems to be spreading too" she said, holding up her hand, which was being covered in black smoke. "Well, I know just what to do." He said, holding a strange crystal. "Look right here" he said, shining a light through the crystal. Sam was knocked out instantly.

"Looks like my little experiment is coming along nicely" he thought, opening the box containing the purple medals. He selected one, a deep purple one with an engraving of a Tyrannosaurus on it. He tossed it in Sam's general direction, and it began to glow. It circled her three times, before it phased into her chest. The Mayor turned off the light shining through the crystal, and Sam woke up. "How do you feel?" he asked. "Great, whatever you did, I think it did the trick!" she said, seeing that her arm was no longer covered in black smoke. "But I sense that something else is troubling you?" the mayor asked, securing the safe. "Yeah, it's just, I hate lying to Austin about all this, and he's starting to distrust me." Sam said, twiddling her thumbs. "Don't worry, when the time comes, you can tell him everything." Sam seemed to except this. "Hans will show you out" the mayor said, gesturing to the door. Sam nodded her head and left.

Once the door was closed, the aid walked up to him. "Sir, you seem to have him wrapped around your finger" he said as the mayor monitored the vitals that were taken of Sam. "Yes, soon, my experiment will be complete" he said. "A few more weeks, and we will have all the data we need." "And what of the girl?" the aid asked. "She is expendable, when the time comes, we will terminate our contract with her. Ah few seconds passed "Oh, you mean kill her!" the aid said, as the mayor gave him a look.

**Midnight**

Austin was walking back from the grocery store, ice cream in tow. He hadn't been able to sleep, still upset from his argument with Sam. He couldn't exactly tell his parents why either, both of them thought Sam was a bad influence, so they would just say "I told you so". Austin rounded the corner to go to the street he knew a ride vendor was on, when he suddenly felt a hand grab him and pull him into a back street. He looked up, expecting it to be a mugger, but instead, he found himself face-to-face with Kazari, who was looking _very_pissed at him. "You humiliated me back there" he hissed, claws extending from his knuckles. Austin would have made a Wolverine joke, but he didn't want to give the bad guy in front of him any more reason to kill him. "Well, sorry, but I kinda had a job to do!" he said as he put the Driver on his waist. He transformed into ShaGoriBa, but Kazari was tougher than he thought. He couldn't even get close enough to land a hit, as the cat kept summoning a tornado of wind, light and heat to keep him at bay. Austin was still worn out from the combo; it didn't take long for Kazari to knock him into a pile of garbage bags.

"Looks like it's the end of the line for you!" Kazari cried as he extended both sets of his claws, ready to strike. Suddenly, a sound broke through the air. It was much louder and more powerful than Sam's shot gun. Austin saw to his right, was an unknown man standing next to a ride vendor. He was holding what appeared to be a bazooka. "Hey thanks man" Austin said as he stood next to him. "Hmph, you shouldn't lower your guard like that" he said as he drove away. Austin turned around to see if Kazari was there, but he had vanished. A gleam caught his eye fore he could leave. He looked down and saw a new medal lying in the street. It appeared to be orange-yellow, and had an engraving of a lion on it.

On a rooftop overlooking the battle field, Kazari was cursing under his breath. "Nice day to loose medals, isn't it?" Uva called, having appeared behind Kazari. "I _would_have gotten them back, but this OOO seems to have an endless supply of back-up" he said, twirling his hair. "Well, I get a turn now" he said, hoping away.

**The Next Morning**

As Austin rode to school, he still kept going over the events of the last couple days in his head. From the appearance of the Greeed, to His transformation, to Dice's sudden change in attitude, to Sam's mysterious disappearance. Once he got to school, he saw Austin waiting for him in the parking lot. "Hey, how are you feeling?" she asked as he transformed the Ride Vendor. "Ok, the ache's dulled for now, but it's still there" he answered, adjusting the strap on his backpack. "Alright, I don't think you should use that Combo again" she said, as Austin nodded his silent agreement. The day past as usual, but Austin wasn't paying attention to his classes. He was still hung up on Sam, specifically how odd he acted when he suggested he should leave.

Across campus, Kitty was taking notes in her culinary class when she felt someone's gaze upon her. The feeling lasted for only a few moments, so she shook it off. Ten minutes later, the feeling was back, so she turned to look, and saw one of the jocks sitting behind her quickly turn around. "Why that little _pervert_" She thought, grabbing a sheet of loose leaf paper and hastily scribbling a note on it. She crumpled it up, and when the teacher wasn't looking, she tossed it. The paper wad landed with in his lap.

Dominic Palmer was sitting in his culinary class, trying to concentrate on the lesson, but it was proving very hard when he kept being distracted by the new girl in class. He had a crush on her from the beginning of the school year, when she first showed up. "I can't help staring at her, I'm a single jock" he thought, quickly turning away before she could catch him. He tried it again ten minutes later, but he hadn't been as quick about turning back, as she had obviously seen him.

He saw her writing something on a piece of paper, and saw her through it his way. It landed right in front of him. He couldn't think straight, the hot girl was talking to him! He uncrumpled the piece of paper, his heart racing, his blood heated up. However, what he read shilled his veins; "You're not my type, and stare at me again, and I'll kill you"

After class, Dominic waited outside, so he could meet the girl. He placed his arm in front of her, blocking her path. "Hey, uh I just wanted to welcome you to school, you being new and all" he said, trying to be as charming as possible. However, all Kitty was seeing was a smug pig. "Nice try, but I already have a friend" she said, shoving him out of the way. Dominic just stared after in the Hall, wondering why she wasn't drooling over his muscles like he thought she should be.

**Meanwhile**

Ankh was sitting outside the school, in the giant oak tree. He couldn't stand this routine. "I have to sit out here for six hours, waiting for him like some kind of pet?" he thought aloud, jumping down from the branch. "Forget this" he said, walking away. He got about 40 feet when a bolt of lightning blocked his path. Ankh turned around to see Uva standing there in his true Greeed form. "Why bother fighting O's" he said, opening his arms, "When I can just take your medals and be done with it?" "You can try" Ankh said, assuming his true form.

**Back inside**

Austin was staring out the window, when he noticed Ankh and Uva fighting. "Oh great, how to get out of here to stop them?" he thought, looking around. Suddenly, the Fire alarm sounded, giving him his answer. Austin made sure he was lost in the crowd that was filing out, when he ran straight into Dice. "You can thank me later" she said as the two sat off for the front lawn. Austin already had the belt on as they reached the front entrance. "So, what form are you going to use?" Dice asked, catching her breath. "Figured I'd try this out" he said, holding up the Lion medal. Dice was too out of breath to ask as Austin slotted the medals into place. "Henshin!" he yelled as the rings encircled him once again. "RAION! GORIRA! BATTA!" the scanner sang as the new Yellow medal locked with the grey and green ones. Scott looked in the reflective window to see his new helmet had spikes on it, reminiscent of a Lion's mane, with blue eyes.

"Dude, hurry!" Dice yelled, and Austin turned to see Uva deliver a blow that knocked two medals out of Ankh. Austin ran out in front of the two monsters. "Let's get this started" he said, as the crystal on the Raion helmet glowed. A bright light flashed from OOO, and glowed brighter and brighter until it covered the entire lawn, blinding everyone there except for Austin. He raised the Gorira fist, and punched it forward, sending the gauntlet flying towards Uva. It hit him square in the head, and he saw a glow escape from him. Ankh had managed to shake off the blinding long enough to catch the Core Medal that had escaped from Uva.

"Now, finish him!" Ankh yelled, tossing the Unagi and Tako medals to him. Austin pulled the Shachi medal out of the holder, bracing himself for the pain. "NO!" Kitty yelled, running up to Austin. "You can't use those, you may have survived it last time, but it may kill you this time!" she cried, holding his right arm which held the three medals. Uva took this this opening to grab two fistfuls of cell medals, and crushed them in half. He tossed them all in the air, summoning about 50 Pseudo-Yummies. However, all the Yummies began to glow and rose up, and all merged together, forming a giant abomination that seemed to be made of hands. It reached out an appendage that grabbed Dice, lifting her into the air.

"Ok you can use them!" Kitty said, releasing his hand. "Thanks" Austin replied, keeping his eyes on the beast. "SHACHI! UNAGI! TAKO! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA!" the scanner sang as the blue armor materialized with the energy splash, and Austin let out a 30 second long scream, and an energy wave that knocked everyone down. ShaUTa then transformed into its water state again, and launched into the air. "Help! Help!" Dice yelled, as she was lifted higher and higher. Austin reached the arm, and used the Tentacle skirt to saw the arm off. Dice fell, but was quickly caught be a swarm of Tako Candroids, which Kitty had activated at the last second. With Dice out of trouble, Austin activated the Scanning charge, drilling straight through the beast, tearing it to shreds.

Austin landed about a mile away, making sure to land away from the crowd of students pouring out of the school. He thought he was going to be fine this time, when pain shot through him again. The pain caused him to lose his balance, falling. However, he felt something catch his fall. As the glow of the armor went away, he saw Dice holding him, her face coming closer to his own, before he blacked out again.

**In the Mayor's office**

The mayor sat in his office, reviewing the summary of his experiment with the purple medals. "Looks like the Greeedification is proceeding as planned" he thought. He suddenly got an email alert on his computer. He opened the attachment to see a video of security camera footage. There seemed to be nothing on it but an empty school hall, until two boys appeared on it. One put something on his waist, when three bright rings of energy encircled him, leaving OOO standing there. His eyes widened upon seeing the true identity of OOOs. A second attachment was listed. Upon opening it, he saw documents on the two boys, Austin James Whitaker and Bethany Waddle. Austin's name was highlighted, with three "O"s next to it. "Well, that is _interesting_" he said, leaning back in his chair.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Batta

Raion, Tora

Gorira

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

**All credit of this story goes ****to** **LiamX315**


	7. Divide and Conquer

**The Tag-Team, the Betrayal, and the Mysterious Package**

**Two weeks later-Midnight-Airport**

A private flight was pulling for a landing. Their sole content was a small box that was being flown in from the Rainforest. No one knew what was in the box, not even the pilot or the currier. All they knew was that the mayor had wanted this flown in special. As the currier stepped out into the Florida air, he knew this was a bigger problem than anyone could imagine

**Three days after that**

Austin was becoming quite content with his life as OOO. He now was able to execute several combo moves while mixing and matching frequently. He had insisted on training every day, even if there wasn't a Greeed attack. The others of course were more than happy to help with this. The only thing they were having reservations about were Austin transforming into ShaUTa, to try to build up a resistance to it. So far, Austin was able to last 2 minutes and thirty seconds longer than he previously had.

He seemed to be using these training sessions to take out his frustrations about Sam. This was evident by whenever someone mentioned her, Austin generally broke whatever he was holding. Suffice to say, things between Austin and Sam were _not_improving. It seemed Sam had to be away more often. "And I just don't get why she's being so secretive!" Scott complained, as a pillow was chucked his way. "And I don't get why you won't shut up about it!" Kitty added, returning to her text book. The three were trying to study at Austin's house, and he had gone off on a tirade about Sam again, but Kitty stopped him quickly enough.

Dice was just sitting in the corner, reading. She couldn't believe she was actually at Austin's house! "Dice, why are you so quiet?" Kitty asked, looking away from Austin. "N-No reason" she hesitantly replied. Truth is, Dice was feeling uneasy around Austin, as she didn't want him to know she stole a kiss from Austin when he was passed out. "He kinda hated me before, what will happen if he knows I did that?" was the prominent thought on his mind.

"Attention employees!" Kougami yelled, appearing on the TV screen in Austin's wall. Austin and Kitty just turned their heads, while Dice had jumped onto the desk, having never met Kougami until this point. "Sorry to interrupt, but I have a little assignment for you" he said, holding up a whisk. "You want us to bake a cake?" Dice asked, as her baking skills were far from being adequate. Austin and Kitty just gave him looks. "As I was saying," Kougami continued "We intercepted news that a package landed at the Airport 3 days ago" "So we just have to pick up a package? No offense, but we kinda have to study" Kitty said, returning to her books. "Ah, but what if I told you that this package was shipped from the rainforest?" no one understood still. "Where there was an outpost of the Greeed project 800 years ago?" he added, peaking their interests. "Plus you are under contract to do this" he added before vanishing.

**30 minutes later**

The three were sitting around in the postal office, waiting for the secretary to return. "So exactly what do you guys do for that cake guy?" Dice asked, looking up from her iPhone. "Mainly we just take down Yummies" Austin answered, pacing for the hundredth time. "This is the first time we've actually gotten an assignment" Kitty added. The conversation ended when the worker returned. "I'm sorry" she said, popping her gum. "But that package was sent out for delivery already". The three turned away, ready to search the streets, "I do have the schedule here" she said holding up a sheet of paper.

Ten minutes later, the trio was hot on the delivery trucks trail. "Ok, so the route says he left, 2 hours ago, so we just need to go to the last place on the route." Dice said, checking the list. "Don't bother, if this is being arranged by some corrupt corporate executive, why don't we just check bank records?" Austin suggested, getting bored. "If this is so important, do you think they would leave a money trail?" Ankh answered, coming out of nowhere. "Get bored sitting in a tree?" Austin asked as the four set off.

Uva was watching them, from atop a building. "Now where are they off to in such a hurry?" he mused to himself, before he noticed some kids waiting outside a video game store. They were all waiting for a release of a new video game. "Hm, I _could_use some back-up" he thought, holding three cell medals up. Kazari was watching the four driving away, curious, as he naturally was. "Maybe I should follow them" he thought, before remembering the medal he had just lost. "Perhaps I could use some help on this" he sighed to himself, noticing some girls fighting over a purse in front of a department store having a discount sale. He smirked his cat-like grin as he held up two cell medals.

**Meanwhile**

The mayor was sitting in his office, reading the briefings on Austin and Dice, when Sam walked in. "You wanted to see me sir?" she asked, sitting in the leather chair. "Yes, I would like you to be at this address tonight" he said, handing a piece of paper to the girl. "I think you will know what to do" he said, returning to the folders. "You got it sir" Sam said, as she turned to leave. "Oh, Sam" he said, stopping her. "Yes sir?" "Has the 'condition' been acting up?" he asked. "No, haven't felt a thing" Sam responded, shrugging. "Good, that's good" he said as Sam left the office. "The girl now contains three of the lost medals" he thought, "And she doesn't seem to be having any side effects, I think it's almost time for me to begin my part" He held up a purple-pink medal with an engraving of a triceratops on it.

**An hour later**

The four were continuing their search for the truck, having split up. Kougami had contacted them once again to tell them he had intercepted intel saying the drop was happening at a warehouse, _not_on the driver's manifesto. They had planned to corner the driver at the warehouse, but none took notice of the followers they had picked up. Ankh was the only to notice the two girls who seemed to be following him for 3 city blocks, _running._"Damn, Kazari's having fun again" He said as he turned his right arm back to its original state. Dice wasn't really paying attention to the outside noises as she listened to music on her headphones, especially the sound of insect wings. Kitty barely noticed the Cockroach that was following her, and Austin was oblivious to the Cricket Yummy running after him. However, this all changed when the onlookers began screaming.

Kitty turned to her right to see the Yummy crawling on buildings. She drew her gun, firing at the legs, trying to wing it. Dice turned to see the Wasp Yummy flying after her. She quickly turned on a road leading into a tunnel, trying to lose it. Austin brought his bike around to see the Cricket Yummy behind him, before it let loose a sonic boom. "Man, I knew this was going too smoothly!" he said as he placed the medals into the belt "SHACHI! GORIRA! BATTA!" the scanner sang out, forming ShaGoriBa. The two proceeded to compete in a sonic battle, until Austin activated the scanning charge, firing the Gori Bagon Pressures at the Cricket, making it explode in a shower of cells. "Gotta get to the warehouse if Uva's involved now" he said, hopping back on his bike.

Kitty was having a hard time evading her pursuer, what with its walking on walls and what not. However, she steered it towards the shipping yard that appeared before her. Unfortunately, it seemed the Yummy had her cornered as she approached an alley. "It's the end of the line for you, pretty" the Yummy sneered, extending its claws. "Hold that thought" she said, as a train slammed into the Yummy, whisking it away at top speeds. "Great, now I have no clue where I am!" she said, not recognizing the streets before her. "Curse being new in town" she said, driving down one of the streets. Ankh had an easier time, once it was clear he wasn't going to be losing his two pursuers, he simply spread his wings and took flight. "The problem with Kazari's Yummies" he thought, flying towards the warehouse "They're pretty much grounded."

**Two Hours later**

Austin finally arrived at the last warehouse in town, where he at last saw the delivery truck. Austin walked inside, when suddenly he felt a great weight drop onto him. He looked up to see Gamel standing on top of him "Got you now OOO!" he said. He raised his hand, ready to strike, when one of the windows shattered. Dice jumped off her bike, as it rammed into Gamel. "Thanks, looks like you keep saving me!" Austin said, helping Dice to her feet. "Don't thank me yet, I brought company" she said, looking at the window. The Wasp Yummy burst in, firing stingers at them. They heard another engine roar, as Kitty rolled in, being pursued by the giant Cockroach yummy. "Damn it, thought I lost it!" she cursed, running over to the others.

"Don't worry guys, I got this" Austin assured them, turning into ShaToraBa. He jumped at the wasp yummy, spraying its wings with water. The Yummy lost its ability to fly, and fell down a shaft in the floor. "Well, that's one" Kitty said, as the three turned to face Gamel and the Cockroach. "Two to go" Dice finished, as Scott stepped forward. "Actually," a voice said to their right "It's still three on three" Uva stepped into the light, and immediately discharged lightning. The three were cornered, as their enemies advanced. But, before they could strike, a ring of fire enveloped them. When they looked up, they saw Ankh descending through a hole in the ceiling.

"You guys just can't stay out of trouble, can you?" he asked, landing on the ground. "Here" he said, tossing a green medal to Austin, "This will keep 'em at bay" Austin looked at the new medal to see an engraving of a Stag Beetle. Austin replaced the Shachi medal with it, and the scanner sounded off "KUWAGAT! TORA! BATTA!" as the green armor materialized on his helmet, and Austin saw beetle horns on the top and the eyes were now orange, as the helmet was reflected in the windows.

"Did we get them?" Gamel asked, walking over to Uva. Green lightning suddenly erupted from the fire as Austin leapt over it and into the battle once more. "I'd say not" Uva responded in a dead-pan voice. The others came running through the fire as Ankh extinguished it with his wings. Dice charged Gamel with a shovel, trying to stab him with it again. "That won't work again" he said, crushing the blade. "I know" Dice said, a grin on her face "I'm the distraction" Kitty leapt down from the pile of machinery, and shot Gamel point blank in the chest. The blast ejected a medal, which Dice caught. "Here baby!" she yelled over the noise, tossing the medal to Austin. "Did you call me baby'?" he asked, catching the Zou medal. "No, I said 'buddy'" Dice said, her eyes shifting left to right as her face turned red.

The scanner called out "KUWAGATA! TORA! ZOU!" as the elephant armor locked in once more, and Austin sent an earth quake at the Cockroach. As he confronted it, Ankh was fighting Uva. He shot a fire ball at him, but Uva jumped, landing behind Ankh, who reacted too slowly, as Uva struck him, causing the Tako medal to be released. Uva caught it, and was about to absorb it, when Gamel ran up to him "That's Mezool's medal" he said, pointing to it. "Yeah, and you're a jabbering idiot, what's your point?" he asked. "Give it to her!" Gamel cried, fighting Uva. "Uh, guys?" Ankh asked "WHAT?" they yelled, turning to see Ankh charging a fireball right in their faces. They were sent flying, as Kitty headed to the back room, where she spotted the delivery guy. "What the hell is going on out there?" he cried, ducking as Gamel was thrown through the wall. "Don't ask, just keep your head down and get out of here" she said, ushering him out the door. She ran to the box lying on the ground at the far end of the room, but some support beams suddenly fell on top of her, forming a make-shift cage. "Don't think so, honey" Uva said, as he walked toward the box, when the giant yummy slammed him out of the way as Austin ran in, scanning the medals. "SCANNING CHARGE!" it sang, as he slammed his feet into the ground, knocking the yummy off balance. He then ran at it, charging the Tora claws with lightning. He sliced through the Yummy, and it exploded into Cell medals. Ankh ran by, and Kitty through a bolt at him. "What!" he hissed, turning to her. "Help me out of here you turkey!" she hissed back, as Ankh cursed under his breath, and began to tear at the bits of metal trapping her.

Dice went to join Austin, when Gamel grabbed him. "You pay for that trick!" he said, holding him. Dice struggled, but the big Greeed was too strong for her. As the others were all occupied, Austin ran and grabbed the box, but Uva wasn't giving up so easily. Austin tried to grab the package, but Uva knocked it out of his hands, appearing from nowhere. It slid into an open door way, when a dark figure approached and picked it up. She looked at the six, and began to walk away. "That's hier, that's who Kougami was talking about!" Kitty yelled, trying to get the beams off of her. As Gamel just stood there, Dice managed to slip out of Gamel's grasp, and ran up to the stranger. She pulled off her hooded jacket to reveal Sam standing there.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Batta

Raion, Tora

Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi

**All credit of this story goes ****to** **LiamX315**


	8. The Reptile Combo

**The Face-Heel Turn, the Four-way Attack, and the Healing Combo**

They all just stared, as Sam was standing there, holding the box. "Sam?" Austin asked, not believing what he was seeing. "I'm sorry" she said, as a booming voice called out on the loud speakers; "SO, you wish to know what was in the package?" "Is that Kougami?" Dice asked. "No, this is different" Kitty responded, as Ankh tore the last of the scraps of metal off of her. "Well, let's just say it's a piece of a much larger puzzle" he cackled, as Uva took the time to sneak away and Gamel followed. "A puzzle that must be completed, and I won't allow anyone to stop it, not even you, OOO" he sneered, before his voice fizzled out.

"Who was that?" Kitty asked, and the others just shrugged. "Guess we now have an official bad guy, great!" Dice said, but Austin just stared at the doorway where Sam had been. "I don't get it" he stammered. "Why would Sam be doing this?" "We don't know she's evil or working for Mr. Scary Voice" Kitty said, putting an arm on his shoulder. "She showed up to claim the package and voice-guy covered her escape. Honey, I think she's evil" Ankh sneered in a deadpan voice.

**At the Mayor's office**

Sam stormed in, slamming the box down on his desk. "Ah, I see you were successful then" he said, before noticing the look of extreme anger on Sam's face. "You didn't tell me Au-OOO was going to be involved!" she yelled, pulling at her hair. "I am sorry, but I thought he wouldn't be a problem for you." Ivan answered, putting down his newspaper. "Well, it is" Austin replied, slumping into a chair. "Yes, well, I could certainly see why your boyfriend would be a distraction." He said in an ominous voice. Sam's eyes widened in shock "I-I'm dating Austin, not OOO" how could he have put the two of them together? "Actually, I think you're seeing them both" Ivan replied, turning the computer screen so Sam could see the security camera footage of Austin transforming. Sam just stood there, not knowing how to respond to this. "Now, i think you are too close to this situation, so I think you should be reassigned." "Reassigned? But, I don't think it will be an issue" Sam stammered, lost for words. "Well, I just don't think you could handle being my personal body guard if your feelings for Austin keep getting in the way"

"Wait, you mean, we are opposing OOO?" Sam asked, not understanding. "Well, let me put it this way, while OOO might seem like a hero at this point, he is a wild card that may prove disastrous in the long run." Ivan said, running his hand over the box. "So, what does this mean for me and him? If I stay with him, you fire me and I don't get the treatment anymore?" she asked, tears forming in her eyes. "I believe that would be the arrangement" Ivan responded, glaring at Sam, when he noticed that Sam's arm was starting to glow again. "Or" Ivan began again "You stay on my team and receive the treatment, but you break up with Austin" Sam just stared in disbelief, how could this man be telling her to break up with her boyfriend? "Or, I could just, _remove_Austin from the picture all together, solve that problem" Ivan offered. "No, no don't hurt him" Sam pleaded, her eyes obscured with tears. "I believe the choice is obvious, then" Ivan said, answering for Sam. "Try and let him down easy" he said, showing Sam the door.

"Sir, is there a reason for this decision?" the aid asked as Ivan returned to his desk. "I have noticed something, it seems that Sam is developing a desire that is strong enough to keep the medals at bay" he said, putting his hands together. "Sir?" "Every time the change happens, it's when the two are in a rough spot, but when they are happy, it is suppressed." Ivan got up and walked to the window, watching as Sam walked out of the building. "And for the sake of the experiment, she must not be happy." "How can you arrange that?" the aid asked, walking to his side. "I think I will give him a little assignment, it will make him utterly miserable" he said, glancing at the photo of his daughter.

**Meanwhile**

Sam was riding the bus, trying to think of a way to break up with Austin, the utter thought of it caused her to be sick to her gut, when she felt a strange sensation. She looked up to see a Japanese high school girl sitting on the opposite end of the bus. Her eyes were solely focused on her. She was starting to feel uncomfortable, worried about what this might do to add to her struggle with Austin, when her eyes glowed blue. She felt a sharp pain shot through her chest, like before, but this time, it seemed to be telling her she was attracted to this girl, and she seemed to be having the same reaction. Before she could react, the bus came to a stop, and the girl got up to leave. As Sam watched her walk away, she could not understand why the pain in her chest was telling her this. She loved Austin, but her instincts seemed to be telling her otherwise.

**The Next day**

Austin seemed to be in a funk, spending all his free time trying to figure out why Sam was there that would not make her evil. He continued in this, even when the Government Class was on a field trip to the mayor's office. Kitty sat next to him, trying to snap him out of it, but he just kept staring out the window, lost in thought. The group arrived at the office building, as they were greeted by the mayor's aid. He read off a list of names, handing out name tags, when he got to Austin's name. He began to worry. "OOO is here? So close to us!" he thought, as he handed the boy the name tag. His hand was trembling as Austin took the sticker, but he seemed too lost in thought to take notice. As the group was ushered off on the tour, the aid quickly headed back up to the Mayor's office.

"So, OOO is here?" Ivan asked as the aid walked into the room. "Yes, how did you..." he asked, before the mayor turned the screen to him, showing the security camera feed. "I saw him as he walked in." "What should we do? What if he found the purple medals?" he asked, leaning on the desk. "He is here on a class trip, and unless someone _tells_him, I don't think we will have an issue" Ivan said, signing some papers. "Now, give this to the secretary to place in the main vault" he said, handing him the box. "Right away sir" he stammered, as he headed out the door.

As he closed the door, he placed the box on the secretary's desk only to turn and see the class group approaching, OOO included. He began to freak, what if they recognized the box? He placed a coat he saw on the ground over it, and walked away, trying to avoid eye contact.

"Well that was odd" Kitty thought, watching the aid walking away, all rigid. "And this, is the mayor's office" their tour guide explained, pointing to the grand oak doors. "Miss?" Dominic asked, raising his hand. "Yea sir, Mr. Palmer?" she asked reading his name tag. "Is there some place we can leave our back packs?" he asked, holding up his backpack containing his five text books and three binders. The rest of the class murmured in agreement. "Yes, you can leave them here, with the secretary" she said, as the woman returned with her lunch. "Yeah, fine, you can leave the bags with me" she grumbled as the students slid their bags to the side of the desk.

The secretary noticed her coat lying on the desk, so she picked it up, and the box fell off the desk, and it landed in Dominic's backpack.

The group set off on the tour, as the mayor watched them leave on his monitors. He then noticed that two girls with bandages on them burst into the building, along with a man with silver hair, and another with a green jacket.

**20 minutes later**

The group had returned to the desk and retrieved their bags, as an alarm began sounding. "What is that?" someone asked, as the guide began ushering them to the back of the building, "Uh, it's just a scheduled safety drill, and you all get to experience our evacuation plan in person, how exciting" The guide was obviously lying, which Austin and Kitty picked up on instantly. A group of employees flooded the halls, giving Austin and Kitty a cover to slip away. They saw the two girls lurching towards them down the hallway, as claws extended from their fingers. "It's odd, we go anywhere, and the Greeed feel the need to attack" Kitty joked, as Austin placed three medals in the belt. "You two just caught me at the WRONG time" he said, sliding the scanner over the medals. "RAION! GORIRA! ZOU!" it sang, as the new random combo formed over Austin. Austin charged at the girls, as Kitty grabbed his arm. "These are Kazari's Yummies, those are real girls" she said, cautioning Austin. "I know" he replied, charging up the Zou Legs. He jumped at them, and delivered a split kick, knocking the Yummies out of the girls.

"Oh, forgot about that" Kitty said, shoving the girls out of the way. Austin delivered punch after punch, as he pummeled the Yummies into a pulp, and he continued to hit them. "Austin!" Kitty yelled, catching his attention "Just finish them!" she called as he turned to face her. "Right" he grumbled, scanning the medals. As the energy built, he launched the Bagon Pressure at the two, reducing them to a pile of cell medals. "You feel better now?" she asked, walking over to Austin. "Slightly" he said in a lifeless voice, as they heard more screams from the atrium.

As the two arrived, they saw Dice and Ankh facing off with Uva and Kazari. "How did you two get here?" Austin asked, jumping in front of Dice. "Ankh sensed the Yummy, and I wanted to cut class, so I followed" Dice answered. "Well, I'm glad you two are here, though I'm not glad you are cutting class" Kitty told Dice. All she could do was smile sheepishly at her. "Now, if you all are done bantering" Uva called "We have a friend who would like to say hi" he said, as the window-wall shattered. As they brought their arms down, they saw the wasp yummy floating there. "What? But, but how?" Dice asked. "You weakened my wings" it buzzed. "But I got better" it buzzed, firing a volley of spears at them. "Here!" Ankh yelled, throwing the Unagi medal to Austin, who used it to transform into LaUZo.

He struck the whips in the air, but the Yummy was able to dodge them, as Ankh and the others rushed Kazari and Uva. Austin heard the familiar sound of a crowd gathering, as they all turned to see the class grouped behind a series of desks, several were recording he fight. "Great, the paparazzi are here" Kitty said, as she dodged Uva's claws. "Yeah! You go OOO!" A voice called, and Kitty saw Dominic pumping his fist in the air, like he was cheering on a teammate. "And Kronk Drywall is here" she thought, but Uva seemed interested in him. "Well, well, well" He mused, running a hand over his claws. "I do think we have found the box!" Kazari quipped, as they walked toward Dominic. The other students fled in terror, and Dominic tripped as he tried to back away. Suddenly, the two Greeed were pushed to the side by the pressure of a fire hose, being fired by Kitty and Dice.

The Wasp Yummy however, wasn't so easily dispatched, and it tried to go after him, but this distraction allowed Austin to grab it with the whips. Ankh shoved Dominic behind a desk "And stay!" he commanded, before sprouting his wings and taking off as Kitty and Dice ran behind the next desk over.

"Why are they chasing me?" Dominic cried, dodging a barrage of spears. "I don't know you idiot!" Kitty called, covering her head. "Do you have something they want?" she asked. "I-I don't think so!" he responded. "Well check!" she yelled back, as he began to go through all of his stuff, trying to find what it was the monsters were looking for. He opened his back pack to see an ancient looking box lying in it, something he had definitely not put in himself. "I think I found it!" he yelled, as Ankh, Kazari, Uva and Austin all turned to look in his direction. He held up the box, and Kitty's eyes widened. "That's the box we were chasing!" Dice confirmed, as Kazari and Uva began to advance. "I-I think there is something inside!" Dominic called, hearing something sliding inside the mysterious box as he rattled it. Dice and Kitty exchanged looks, they had no idea what it could be. The Wasp Yummy suddenly landed in front of them, and Kitty rushed forward, grabbing the flagpole next to her, using it as a Bo staff against the opponent.

Dominic broke open the box, to see three orange coins inside. "What the hell are these?" he asked, holding them up in curiosity. "You moron, throw them to Austin!" Kitty commanded, struggling against the Wasp Yummy. Dominic threw them with the accuracy of a quarterback, and Austin caught them with ease. They were engraved with a Cobra, a Turtle, and what looked like either an Alligator or a crocodile. "Sweet, new medals!" Austin cheered as he replaced the ones he had in his belt with these. "He ran the scanner over them, and it sang in response; "KOBURA! KAME! WANI! BURAKAAAAAWANI!" The three rings appeared again, only this time, a sixth, orange ring had been added to each band. The three new orange rings locked into a brand new combo. An energy sphere surrounded Austin, with what seemed like a snake curling around him. The orange armor solidified, giving him shield gauntlets on his arms and shoulders, and alligator like scales on his legs, with an alligator head on each shin. He looked to the side to see that his helmet had a cobra coiled in such a way to resemble a turban, and OOO now had purple eyes.

"What combo is that?" Kazari asked, not recognizing the medals. "I, don't really know myself" Ankh replied, as in the dark as the others. "Doesn't matter, there's still only one of him" Uva yelled, swiping at Austin. Austin raised his arm to block the attack, and a glow surrounded his chest and arms. Uva's claws just bounced off! "What the?" he asked, looking from his claws to Austin. A glow surrounded Austin's legs, and he smiled under his helmet. "You are in for it now!" Austin smirked as he swung his leg at Uva, and an Aura alligator head bit down on him, breaking a handful of cell medals off. Austin continued the assault, collecting a decent pile of cell medals. "This is bad" Uva said, as he crushed a pile of the cell medals, creating a swarm of Pseudo-Yummies. Austin clapped his hands together, and a flute appeared between them. He put it up to his mouth plate, and began playing a tune that sounded like a snake charming song.

The "ponytail" on OOO's helmet elongated; and the tip grew until it became a giant cobra attached to the helmet. As Austin played, the snake struck at the Greeed as it bit through the Yummies, reducing them to dust. The force of the blow was enough, as two green glows and a blue one broke free from Uva. Dice ran forward, catching them. He opened his hand to see a second Batta medal, the stolen Tako medal, and a new medal. It was lime green, and had an engraving of a mantis on it. Dice put these medals into her pocket, and returned to her hiding spot. The wasp Yummy returned, firing its stingers at OOO. Austin brought the pieces of the Shield's together, and a giant energy shield blocked all the spears. Austin put the flute to his lips again, and the Cobra struck the yummy, tearing its wings off. The Yummy was getting to its feet, as Austin scanned the medals, activating the scanning charge. Austin ran toward the monster as three rings appeared in front of him. He dropped to his knees, and began sliding along the ground, in a serpentine motion. The yummy continued firing, but Austin had the energy shield up, blocking any attacks that might have hit. Austin got right in front of the creature, and suddenly jumped right in its face. The aura alligator heads merged, creating a giant Cobra head, biting the yummy into cell medals.

"Well, I'm out of here!" Kazari yelled, running out the door, as Uva followed, clutching his chest. Ankh turned from the scene to begin gathering up the cell medals. Austin ran over to Austin, just in time to catch him as he collapsed from the pain of the full combo. "Austin Whitaker?" Dominic called, standing up. "It's a long story" Dice said, grabbing his arm. "Just help us get him out of here" She said, as Ankh retuned, with a pile of cell medals. They walked out of the building, as the mayor watched from the balcony.

"I thought I said those medals were to be placed in the vault!" Ivan said, losing his patience with the bumbling aid. "I'm sorry sir, I did not mean for him to get them" he whimpered. "Well, I'd watch your step if I were you" Ivan said, glaring at the man.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora

Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Note: (Reviews welcome, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)


	9. Party the Night Away

**The Break-up, the Nest, and the Party**

**Two hours later**

Austin was back on his bed, having passed out from the strain of his new Combo. "Man, and I thought I getting better at it" He thought, stretching his arms. He looked to his left and saw the picture on his nightstand of him and Sam. He grimaced, as he knocked it over, cracking the glass.

Downstairs, the gang was filling Dominic in on the medals and the Greeed. "I don't see why we have to let this guy know, it's more dead weight that could slow us down" Ankh said, turning the new green medal over in his hand. "Well, Dominic's involved now, whether we like it or not" Kitty responded, picking up the cell medals she had been using to teach Dominic. "What I don't get" Dominic started, "Is why is a geek like Austin a superhero? Powers always go to the hunky football player, which is me!" he asked. Kitty slapped him, and Dice chucked a book at him. "Maybe you should consider that he's much _nicer_ than you" She said, walking away from him. "Niceness? What's that got to do being a hero?" "Oh, I don't know, _everything_" Dice shot back, crossing her arms. Dominic just rolled his eyes, leaning back on the couch. "Do you think Kougami could erase his memory?" Dice asked Kitty, "Maybe" she replied. "Forget it" AUstin responded, emerging from his room.

"What are you talking about?" Ankh asked, biting his talons. "Dominic _is_ part of the team, and we all just have to get along with it." He said, refusing to look at Dominic. The others grumbled their agreements, as Dominic just sat, not understanding.

**The next day**

The teacher had been curious as the where the group had vanished to, but Kougami came through with giving them alibis, they had apparently been running an errand for him. Oh, and Dominic was now employed by Kougami Industries as well. Austin was walking in the hall, when he spotted Dominic coming out of the locker room. "Hey, OOO-boy" Dominic greeted him, as Austin planted his foot in Dominic's shin. "Ow, what was that for?" he winced, rubbing his leg. "Trying to have a secret identity here!" Austin answered as he opened his locker. "Dude, why?" Dominic asked. "If people know, than you're popular! You get money, fame, government co-operation, and most of all, dudes!" he said, nodding his head towards a group of guys. "What part of 'I'm Straight Now' do you not understand?" Austin asked, raising an eyebrow. "Oh, right forgot about that" he said, still staring as the guys walked away. "Sorry about those guys last year man" he said, patting him on the shoulder. "It's ok, you needed to keep up your reputation as a meat head, and i get that" he said, closing his locker. "Ok, that's it!" Dominic growled, slamming his hand on Austin's locker. "First Kitty and now you, why do you people keep calling me a dumb jock or a pig?" Austin rolled his eyes; "Because you are. All you care about is sports statistics and acting like those guys in the Fraternity movies, you play up to the stereotype because that's all you know" Austin answered, walking away.

**Later, during football practice**

Dominic was still thinking about Austin's words, as he worked on the plays for next week's game. As the other guys went about their typical hijinks, Dominic was about to join them, when Austin's words came back to him "You play up to the stereotype". Suddenly, a red feather fell in front of him, and he looked up to see the bird guy sitting in the tree above him. "Hey, you're...Ash, right?" he asked, squinting his eyes. "_Ankh_" the man sneered, munching on a Popsicle. "Right, so, do you think I'm a meat head too?" he asked, "like all the others?". "Not really" Ankh replied. Dominic breathed a sigh of relief, until "I just think you're dead weight mostly" Ankh finished.

**At the mayor's office**

Sam stepped over the broken glass on the floor of the atrium, as the workers were busy cleaning up the debris. Ivan saw Sam, and motioned for her to approach him. "What happened here?" she asked, as one of the workers walked by with a crate full of spears. "Oh, your boyfriend decided to not play nice on my turf" he answered, signing off on a building permit. "Austin did all this?" Sam asked, looking at all the impact sites. "Well, the Greeed helped, but as I told you earlier, OOO is bad news. He leaves destruction in his path" Sam just looked down "You haven't told him yet?" Ivan asked, looking over his glasses. "Not yet, but I was told you had an assignment for me?" Sam asked, quickly changing the subject. "Yeah, with all the damage that is occurring around this town, I have become worried for my daughter's safety." He said, flipping through a folder. "So, you want me to protect her?" Sam asked, remembering how nasty she was, at least, according to Austin. "Yes, I would like you to be her personal body guard. And if she starts bugging you, just give her what she wants, I find that's the best way to get her to shut up" he said. "Yes sir" Sam replied, walking out the door. "Oh, and Sam, find a way to let him down, or I'll let him down!" Ivan called, and Sam nodded in approval, and left quickly. "Oh I get it, you meant kill Austin!" the aid said, arriving to the scene. Ivan smacked him in return.

**Back at school**

Austin was once again walking in the halls, when he spotted Kitty and Dice looking at a poster. "Well this can't be good" he thought, walking up to them. "Check this out!" Kitty said, as Scott saw a poster advertising a party. "Think we should go?" Dice asked, picking one of the flyers out of the bucket hanging under the poster. Austin's hand suddenly shot out from behind them, and crumpled the paper. "Oh come on Austin, it could be fun!" Kitty objected, taking another flyer. "Please, you know who hosts every party?" Austin asked, as Dice and Kitty exchanged looks. "Shelby" they answered, understanding why Austin was like this. "Wait, have you even _been_ to a party before?" she asked. "Yeah, and it went bad" Austin said, throwing the flyer in the trash and walking away. "How bad was it?" she asked Dice, who's face turned red. "Well, let's just say no one ever has to ask if he wears boxers or briefs anymore" she replied as she walked away, and a few seconds later, Kitty understood, a horrified expression on her face.

**Outside**

Mezool was walking along the sidewalk, in front of the high school. As she watched, she saw Ankh leap through the trees. "That's him alright" she thought, as the memory of her meeting with the strange woman on the bus returned to her. She couldn't explain the sensation she was feeling, the closest thing she could think of was desire, a want, but why would she want this woman? And why did it seem she had same feeling? She shook the thoughts out of her head, as she heard a voice from the parking lot. "No, I want 40 cases of beer, and the good stuff, not any of that Bud American Ale crap" the girl said into her phone as she lay on the hood of a car, twirling her hair. "This has to be the biggest party _ever!" _The girl was radiating pure desire, Mezool had never felt any desire so powerful. "What are you staring at?" the girl asked "Nothing" Mezool replied, holding a cell medal behind her back. "Good, now leave!" the girl commanded, snapping her fingers. Mezool turned around and walked a few steps, and when the girl stopped paying attention, she flung the cell medal into the girls head. "Now, the fun will begin" Mezool chuckled to herself, walking away from the nest that was forming.

**That Night**

Dominic was walking through the club where the party was being held. It was incredibly crowded, more so than any other party Shelby had held in the past. He made his way to the snack table to grab another slice of pizza, when he saw the host of honor. He raised his glass to toast her, but she barely noticed him, rushing through the crowd, muttering something. He took notice, what with everything that had been happening as of late, this seemed out of character, even for Shelby. He found her, as she was making her tenth run-through of the party floor. "Shelby, hey girl!" he said, grabbing her arm. "WHAT?" she demanded, escaping his grip. "I just wanted to see if everything is ok, you seem a little stressed." "No, no everything is not alright, there aren't enough people here to make it a night to remember, they all keep coming and going!" she growled, as she went to the door, and _locked it_. "There, now they can't leave!" she cackled, heading towards the back entrance. Sensing something was wrong, Dominic grabbed his cell phone and dialed Austin.

"Hey, Austin!" he said over the sound of the band. "What?" he asked "You need to get to Shelby's party, now!" he said, as Shelby began boarding the windows. "Look, last time I went to one, I ended up on the cover of the school newspaper, so no thank you!" Austin answered, hanging up before Dominic could explain.

As Austin hung up his phone, he heard a rock hit his window. He looked outside to see Ankh standing there, glaring at him. "Get out here! We got work!" Ankh hissed, as Austin looked over his shoulder, at his locked door. Deciding it was safe, Austin climbed out his window, making sure to turn the lights out. "What is it?" he asked as he reached the ground. "We got a live one!" Ankh said, sprouting his wings. Austin hurried to the Ride Vendor next to his house, and the two set off. After seven minutes of searching, Ankh swooped lower, and called to Austin; "It's the next building on the left!" he shouted over the wind. As they turned into the parking lot, Austin saw many cars he recognized from school, and fearing the worst, he called Dominic.

"Dude, what is address of the party?" he asked. "The club on Rich Lane!" Dominic called, before he was cut off. Austin turned to look at the street sign, to see that they were in fact on Rich Lane. "Looks like I should have come to this party after all" he said, as the two headed towards the door.

**Inside**

Shelby was boarding up the windows, when someone said, "Hey look, its little Austin "Boxers" Whitaker! What plans do we have for him this time?" Shelby looked out the remaining window, and hissed "Intruders!" as she boarded up the last window, sealing them in.

**Outside**

As Austin and Ankh reached the door, they saw a bright red sports car begin rocking to their right. "What's that about?" Ankh asked, as Austin grabbed his arm "Trust me, when a car is rocking, you walk the other way" he said. As they walked closer to the building, the car began glowing too, and a splash erupted from it. "Geez!" Austin yelled as they were slammed into the ground, only to see a Swordfish Yummy standing before them. "Mezool?" Austin asked Ankh, who nodded. "Yeah, looks like she wants a turn" he said, producing three medals "Here!" he called. Austin caught the three medals, and put them in the belt. "Henshin!" he called as the scanner rang out "KUWAGATA! TORA! WANI!" the Green, Yellow and Orange rings locked together. "Fillet that thing!" Ankh called, assuming his Greeed form. Austin ran forward, and performed a roundhouse kick, biting the Yummy. The creature, in response, grew two swords from his arms, as Austin drew the Medajalibur. He sliced at the yummy, but it was able to counter every slice, even blocking the lightning blasts from the Kuwagata helmet and becoming quick enough to dodge the Deadscythers.

"Ankh!" Austin called, as he folded his arms. "Tch" Ankh replied, producing another medal. "If you lose THIS one, I _will _kill you" he said, tossing it to him. Austin caught it and saw it to be a new _red _medal. It was hard to describe, but it slightly resembled a peacock. "Hurry up and put it in the middle!" Ankh commanded, shooting a fireball at the Yummy. Austin replaced the Tora medal with it, and the scanner sang out "KUWAGATA! KUJAKU! WANI!" as the red ring on the middle band locked into place, giving OOO new chest armor, with feather like shoulder pads. The chest symbol suddenly glowed, as a disk emerged from it, and it attached itself to Austin's left forearm. It looked like a giant medal, except it had a phoenix on it. Austin held it up, and a fireball erupted from it. Austin and Ankh fired a melee of shots at the yummy, and smoke began emanating from it. "Ah, I love fresh grilled Swordfish!" Austin said, punching the Yummy. "Quickly, replace the cell medals inside that thing!" Ankh called out, as the yummy was staggering from being dehydrated.

Scott opened the device up to see seven cell medals inside it. He flicked three out (which Ankh quickly absorbed) and replaced them with the three medals in the belt. He ran the scanner over it, and it sang out a new song "KUWAGAT! KUJAKU! WANI! GIN! GIN! GIN! GIN! GIGA SCAN!" as a vortex appeared around the spinner, consisting of fire, lightning, and sound waves. Austin thrust his arm forward, and aura animals shot out of it. A lightning charged Stab Beetle, a Fire engulfed Peacock, and a sound surrounded Alligator struck the yummy, reducing it to a pile of cell medals, leaving an after image of three "O"s in the air. "What is this?" Austin asked, admiring his new weapon. "That, was a onetime thing, as I want my medal back!" he said, grabbing the Kujaku medal out of the belt, returning Austin to normal. "Alright, I was going to give it back, touchy!" Austin sneered at him, grabbing the fallen cell medals.

**Inside**

Dominic had been listening at the door for signs of what was happening, and he finally heard what sounded like a yummy shattering. "Yes!" he cheered, as he saw Shelby once again. She was looking slightly disheveled, "They will _not _ruin this party" she hissed.

**Meanwhile, at Kougami's**

Kougami was crafting another cake, as Erika was lounging on the couch, reading her magazine. A knock on the door came to their attention, and a scientist entered. "How is the research coming?" Kougami asked, adding sugar to the mix. "Very good sir, the tests have all come back positive, and we are ready to move past the proto-type stage, and begin actual construction." He said, placing some files on the coffee table before leaving. "Miss Satonaka, how is your search coming?" he asked. "Good, I have narrowed it down to three choices" she said, placing more files on the desk "SUBARASHII!" he cried.

**Meanwhile**

Sam was sitting on a ride vendor, outside the party, wondering how to break the news to Austin, having watched him take down the Yummy. She didn't want to break up with him, but she also didn't want to die or let Austin die, so she had to do this. Sam felt the sadness growing in her heart once again, till she felt her arm itching. She reached down to scratch it, only to feel something that wasn't skin. She looked down, and to her horror, her right arm was now dark grey, armor-like, with purple claws on her fingers. "No, what's happening?" Sam cried, holding her arm as tears fell on it.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta X2

Raion, Tora

Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani


	10. The Super Combo is Grounded?

**The Grounding, the Devastation, and the Super Combo**

Sam was holding her arm, freaking out. "Why is it like this?" she yelled out loud, by mistake. "Who's there?" Austin called, having heard. sam tried to remain quite, but felt the cold steel of a gun muzzle against her neck. "I'd start walking" Goto advised, pressing the gun closer. The two walked out, and Sam could see the confused look on Sam's face. "Alright, and we get answers now!" Ankh said, holding her arm up. "So, are you evil now, _baby_?" Austin asked, his voice bitter. "Well, I don't know if this would be the best time, but I think we should see other..." Sam began, before Austin's fist slammed into her nose. "Well, I'll take that as a yes then?" she quipped, as Ankh grabbed her by the neck, holding her up. He was choking Sam, and seemed to be enjoying it, as Austin and Goto were just watching. Sam stopped trying to grab Ankh, as a strange instinct took over her body, and she slammed the "infected" arm into Ankh, who promptly dropped him, holding his gut, as if in pain.

"You little bitch!" Ankh snarled, getting to his feet. "You better explain yourself Sam, before I release him again!" Austin growled, holding Ankh's arm. "I can't, I'm sorry, but we both are better off if we break up, I'm sorry" she said, wiping the blood off her face. "Oh, you will be!" Austin said, toying with his grip on Ankh. However, before they could continue this interrogation, the car began rocking again, and four yummy escaped from it. "Four? More?" Austin wondered "I thought we dealt with it already!" "This is Mezool's, she creates _swarms_ of Yummy, all being born from a "nest", and I guess that car is the nest." Ankh said, transforming back into his Greeed form. He tossed three medals to Austin again, and he transformed.

"RAION! KAME! ZOU!" the scanner sang as the yellow, orange and grey rings docked together, creating the OOO suit. Austin quickly let loose a burst of light, blinding the fish. He then created a shockwave, knocking them all down. Ankh then shot a stream of feather missiles at them, as Austin slashed with his sword again. While this was all going on, Sam ran towards the building, only to find the door locked. "Hey, Shelby, you in there?" she yelled, banging on the door. No one seemed to take notice, as the music was drowning out the sound. No one, except for Dominic that is. He ran towards the door, unlocking it. "Hey, you're Austin's boyfriend, right?" he asked, seeing Sam. "Not anymore" she replied, pushing past the jock. "You're welcome" he said, before rushing out the door to see the crowd of Yummies. Ankh and Austin were each fighting two at once.

Dominic grabbed a shovel lying next to the door, and charged at the second one fighting Austin, planting the blade in the Yummy's skull. "Thanks" Dominic said, a little impressed. "I got this one!" he assured him, as Ankh sent another volley forward. "Man, these stupid fish sticks are way too slippery!" he cursed, as a rocket exploded into one, as Ankh turned to see Goto there, with a rocket launcher. "Need some help?" he asked. Ankh rolled his head, as Goto charged forward with double guns. This continued for a few moments, before they were ready to finish the Yummies. Dominic charged forward, spearing his Yummy through the chest, causing it to dissolve. Ankh and Goto each shot theirs point blank, destroying them. And to finish it, Austin activated the scanning charge, letting loose a light blast and charged with the shields raised, before delivering a kick to the chest, finishing them off.

Sam managed to find Shelby, who seemed to be huddled over in the corner. "Shelby, are you ok?" she asked. Shelby looked up, and her eyes widened "Why, hello there" she said, as the blue glow in her eyes faded. "Your dad sent me to protect you" she said, helping her to her feet. "Well, perhaps a little more than that" she said, stroking her face.

**Outside**

The four regrouped, only to see the car begin shaking again, as if it was in a level 9 earthquake. "_That_, cannot be good" Dominic said, as the four guys backed away "It isn't" Ankh replied, as Yummy after Yummy began erupting from the car, creating a sea of monsters. "Well, that could be a problem" Goto added, as the others turned to look at him, as if to say; "ya think?" The swarm of Swordfish Yummies was heading towards them, all brandishing their swords. "So, I guess it's combo time?" Austin asked, as Ankh nodded in agreement.. "So, which combo this time, ShaUTa? BuraKaWani?" he asked. "I think, this one instead." Ankh replied, holding up the three Green medals. "But this one may leave you a little more spent than the others" he said, pulling them away, as if in warning. "Don't really have time to think about that right now" Austin said as he grabbed them, replacing the medals. "Here goes" he said, scanning them "KUWAGATA! KAMAKIRI! BATTA!" GAATA-GATA-GATA-KIRIBA! GATAKIRIBA!" it sang, as the green armor locked together. Austin had enough time to see that his forearms now had blocky gauntlets on it, and arm length blades extending up to the shoulders, and a shockwave emanated from him as he roared with power. "Now, go!" Ankh commanded, as Austin starting running towards the Yummy Sea.

Suddenly, it seemed he was everywhere at once, yet still OOO. As it turned out, GataKiriBa was duplicating itself, creating around _60_ clones of itself. Some of the GataKirirba's activated their arm powers, and the blades rotated, to be held underarm style. They all were controlled by Austin, as they all sliced, kicked, punched, and electrocuted the Yummy. Even though the Yummies stopped being created, the GataKiriBa clones kept appearing. Left and right, the Yummies were dropping into cell medals. They were no match for the full combo, and they knew it. The Yummy began forming together, creating another eldritch abomination. It opened its mouth, sending a huge blast of energy towards the OOO's. However, all the riders activated their finishers, as 80 or so scanners sang out "SCANNING CHARGE!" All their legs became grasshopper legs, and they jumped, flying towards the beast. They charged up their blades and feet with electricity, and collided with the monster. It exploded in a grand shower of medals, as a single GataKiriBa fell a few yards away. Ankh seemed over joyed, as he was practically swimming in cell medals!

The three raced to him, and Dominic managed to catch him as he collapsed again. "Geez, what's with this kid and fainting?" Dominic asked, holding Austin up. "Full combos contain the power of the Greeed they embody, so the power surge wipes him out." Ankh said, resuming his human form. "Nnh" Austin groaned, coming to. "Man, that thing is worse than a hangover, I-I bet" Austin added hastily. "Well, I gotta get back to Kougami's" Goto said, putting his helmet on. "Hey, thanks for helping out there!" Austin called. "Sure, no problem" he replied, taking off.

"Now, we should get out of here" Astin said, as they helped him to his feet. "Sure, but what about Sam?" Dominic asked, as Austin shot him a look "What _about_ her?" he sniped back, his voice positively _soaked_ with bitterness. Dominic just shrugged a look to Ankh, as they left in Dominic's jeep. As they pulled up to Austin's house, they saw that the lights were out. "Great, my parents are asleep." He said, as he and Ankh hopped out the car. "Ok, see you at school!" Dominic called as he drove off. Austin climbed up to his window, and eased it open as quietly as possible. He back into his room, as the lights suddenly sprang on. He turned to see his parents standing behind him. "I'm in trouble, aren't I?" he asked, as they both nodded their heads in a stern manner.

"You snuck out?" his mother said, slamming his window shut before Ankh could follow. "Well, I had to go to work, Mr. Kougami wanted me to run some errands for him" he tried to explain, before his father cut him off. "Then why did we track your phone to a club downtown?" "You tracked my phone?" Austin asked, accusingly. "Don't give me a tone" his father said, standing up. "I invented that feature" he actually did, for Austin's father is a technologic developer. "Austin, we're concerned about these changes in your behavior" his mother said, trying to put an arm around him, as he jumped off his bed. "What changes?" he asked, not buying a word of it. "The principal has called, and told us about how you seem to keep vanishing, and that you beat up a track runner" she explained, as Austin rolled his eyes. "That's just Shelby making stuff up. "AUSTIN" she yelled, "You leave that nice girl alone, you know what she has been through, you have no right to make up stuff about her being an evil heartless woman." "I am _not _making shit up about her, she is a viper!" he said "Austin! Watch your language!" his father said, glaring at him.

"Now, I don't know what kind of 'work' this Kougami person has you doing, but it obviously has been having a negative impact on you." Austin was completely lost at this point. "So...?" he asked cautiously. "We feel you should get a real job, not one that has you running off at random times, skipping class and what not" he continued, as Austin rolled his eyes. "That, just bought you two months of being grounding, on top of the two weeks we were already going to give you" his father said, yanking Scott's Sony Ps3 off the desk. "Wait, you can't be serious!" Austin protest, but they both gave him looks. "You are obviously not concentrating on your school work, with all these distraction, so we are taking all this stuff" his mother explained, as they walked out the room, locking the door.

**The next morning**

Austin woke up, his head still aching from GataKiriBa. He saw that while he had been sleeping, his parents had covered his TV and Computer with chains. He got dressed, and headed downstairs, holding a cell medal in his pocket as he was walking to the door. "Austin, where are you going?" his mother asked, and he saw the two of them sitting at the table. "To school, I'm going to grab a ride, from a friend" Austin explained, as his father got up. "No, I don't think so, I will be taking you to school" he said, as Austin followed him out the door. The two sat in silence, until they pulled up to the school. "Now, I expect you to be here waiting for me right after school" his father said as Austin got out of the car. Austin nodded a quick "Yes Sir" and walked to school, as Kitty appeared on his right side and Dice did the same on his left. "Hey, we didn't see you on the road today" she said "Yeah, I missed our driving time" Dice stammered. "Hey, what's wrong?" she asked, noticing his attitude. "I got grounded" he explained, as they both gasped. "People still get grounded?" Dice asked "Yeah, and it was because a Yummy attack happened to be at midnight, and at a party, my parents think I'm turning into a delinquent" he said, his head hung. "See, I told you we should have gone to that party!" Kitty said, as the two just stared at her "What? Too soon?" she asked, as the three walked to class.

They walked past the parking lot, as Austin saw something that worsened his mood. Shelby was getting out of her car, which was being driven by...Sam. He felt his blood boiling as she kissed her on the cheek, before heading into the building, as she followed her. "This won't end well" Kitty said, shooting a worried look to Dice who added "Nope, not for anyone"

The entire day, Austin was unfortunately forced to see Sam, as she seemed to be everywhere Shelby was. It was really bad, as Kitty and Dice knew it was only a matter of time until he exploded. Gym glass finally came and the three were sitting under their normal tree, as a red feather fell from the tree. "Are you molting or something?" Kitty asked Ankh, as he jumped down onto the bleachers. "No, I just like dropping feathers, you should see the front lawn, I think the bird club is having a field day out there" he said, munching on a Popsicle. "We have a bird club?" Kitty asked, and Dice nodded silently. "Well, not sure if you guys noticed, but Sam seems to on campus" Ankh said "_We know_" the three of them answered. Ankh was about to ask more, but Kitty and Dice both shot him looks, and he shrugged, before taking off again.

Then, to make matters worse, Shelby walked onto the field, as Sam was behind her, holding an umbrella over her. Austin's grip tightened on the stick he was holding, until it was snapped in half. Unfortunately, Shelby heard the sound. "Oh, hi Austin and all the rest" she sneered. Sam was trying very hard to avoid eye contact. "Do you know Samantha Lioyd?" she asked, as Austin's jaw tightened. "Nope, I don't know her at all" he said, getting to his feet. "Now if you excuse me, I have to go _throw up_ now." He said, walking off with disgust.

**At Kougami's office**

The same scientist walked in, holding a briefcase. "Is it finished?" Kougami asked. "Yes sir, the first model is done and ready" he said, opening the case. "We made it to your exact specifications" he said. Kougami walked from behind his desk, spread his arms and said "SUBARASHII Now, we need Satonaka's part, and it will be complete!" He said, a boyish smile on his face

**At the Mayor's office**

Kazari was walking out in front of the building he had been defeated in a few days ago. The building crew was still at work cleaning up the mess. "Humans are so lazy" Kazari thought, as he stepped over the "Keep Out" tape. He had returned because during that fight, he had sensed something. He wasn't entirely sure as to what it was. It seemed similar to a Medal signature, but it seemed different, more powerful, more _savage_. He walked through the halls, tracking the energy. No one was paying attention to him, as they were all concerned with the repairs. He had a few close calls with the cops, but as long as he kept walking like he had authority, they left him alone. He soon found himself in front of two large oak doors, feeling the energy inside. He went inside, and found himself in a very large room, that had an ominous feel to it. He saw a safe on the wall, and found himself being drawn to it. "Curiosity killed the cat you know" a voice said, and Kazari whipped around to see a man standing at the door. He was wearing an expensive suit, had purple tented glasses, and slicked back hair. "I'm sorry sir, I was lost" Kazari tried. "Nice try, Kazari" he said, and the Greeed's eyes widened. "How..." he began "How did I know it's you?" the man said, walking to his desk. He typed a few things on his computer, and turned the screen to face Kazari.

On the screen was the security camera footage from the other day. It showed Kazari and Uva enter, and promptly transform into their true forms. "So, you know who I am, you're just a human, I could take you out in one strike!" Kazari said, transforming his right hand and extending his claws. "Funny, I know that trick too" he said, as his own right arm shimmered, and became light grey, with dark purple claws on the end. He struck Kazari in the chest, and a chunk of medals flew out, including a bright yellow one. Kazari tried to grab it, but it shattered. "You, what, how?" he stammered, not understanding how a medal of his could be destroyed. "You don't remember?" he asked, as the man walked to the safe, and opened it. Kazari just stood in shock. "Maybe this will jog your memory" he said, holding up one of the pterodactyl medals. Kazari stared at it for a few moments, before his eyes widened in understanding. "Giru..." he whispered, "When did you break free" he asked backing into a corner, terror on his face. "Oh no, I'm not Giru" the man said, as the medal port opened on his forehead, and he inserted the medal. He glowed purple for a second, before his other arm transformed as well. "Who are you?" Kazari asked, horrified. "I, am Ivan Harper, your new master" he said, staring Kazari down.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta X2

Raion, Tora

Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani


	11. Doppelgangland

**The Brother, the Thief, and another OOO?**

**The next week**

Austin was getting fed up with his being grounded. He wasn't allowed to go anywhere by himself. What was worse was that his mother was discussing sending him to a new-age therapist. "He obviously has anti-social disorders, and our techniques can help cure him" the woman had said, who visited them on this matter. Austin had no desire to go to therapy. He personally felt OOO was his own brand of therapy. He had been thinking this, all while walking to his Government class. He sat down, as Dominic sat next to him. "Hey," he said, sitting next to him. "Yes?" Austin asked, pulling his text book out of his back pack. "Well, i just wanted to let you know, my brother is arriving back in town" Dominic said, as Austin was only half paying attention. "Uh-huh" he mumbled. "You don't understand, my brother, _Hunter_ Palmer, is a legend!" he said, as he began recounting tales of the infamous Hunter. They ranged from having a new one-night stand every week to being able to down four bottles of Beer in 10 seconds, to streaking across campus, not once, not twice, but _FIFTY_times. "Yeah, and I've barely done squat to live up to that" Dominic groaned, as Austin rolled his eyes.

"You're playing up to the stereotype again. Perhaps, instead of trying to be a clone of Hunter, you could try being your own person?" Austin asked, as it was now Dominic's turn to roll his eyes. "Please, he arrives tomorrow, there's no time for me to create my own identity or whatever" he said, as Austin stopped paying attention.

**In another part of the school**

Cassie Nelborn was a very tired teacher. She had been teaching art for twenty years, and it seemed to suck the life out of her. Every year she got classes full of miscreants and vandals, who refused to cooperate with her teachings. Also, the miserable salary she was getting didn't help either. She was just getting her mail from the office, when she noticed an "on notice" slip in her box. "They are going to fire me?" she gasped. She heard a noise and saw some students walking by, with about 10,000 dollars on their person in electronics and clothes. She began to get jealous, so jealous in fact, that she didn't notice the silver haired young man placing a cell medal in her head.

"If this doesn't get me on good terms with the boss, I'm sunk" Kazari said, walking out of the office.

**Twenty minutes later, in the locker room**

Dominic was returning to his locker to get changed after a grueling training session. As he got dressed, he just kept thinking about his brother's visit the next day. However, he was immediately snapped out of his funk when he saw that his Rolex watch was missing. As it turned out, a lot of students had their property stolen. Naturally, Shelby was quick to blame Austin, so it came to no one's surprise when she fingered him as the thief. "Why would I want to steal all this stuff, when I have it all already?" he asked, closing his locker. "Because you are a horrible person, who enjoys making others suffer" she replied, squinting at him. "Honey, have you looked in the mirror lately?" Austin thought, rolling his eyes. However, before he could reply, Ms. Nelborn ran by, in a very cat-like fashion, holding a collection of hats, sneakers, cellphones, and iPods. "Stop, thief!" a pack of kids yelled, chasing after her. "You got lucky, Whitaker" Shelby said, slinking away. Austin hadn't noticed the Yummy bandages on her, however, as he went to where his dad was parked.

**30 minutes later**

Dominic was leading the mob in chasing the thief, and they had been doing so for several blocks. They had lost a few members do to this, but the mob was still going strong. Dominic noticed that Kitty was in the mob too, along with Dice. "What did she take from you guys?" he asked. "She took my camera, with all my pictures of, uh, puppies!" Dice said, choosing her words carefully. "What about you?" he asked Kitty. "Nothing, I just like mobs!" she smiled. Dominic smiled back, thinking that if they were in a cartoon, this chase would be set to some upbeat music.

**At Austin's house**

Austin and his dad walked in, as he flopped onto the couch. He picked up the remote, before his dad swiped it from his hand. "No TV, remember? Now, go study" he said, pointing to Austin's room. He went to the kitchen, as Austin pulled his books out of his bag. "Dang it!" his father called from the Kitchen. "Problems?" "I forgot I have a meeting in a few moments, you promise to behave?" he asked, looking sternly at his son. "Sure, I promise" Austin said, as his dad rushed out the door. As soon as his dad had driven down the street, Austin grabbed the remote and began channel surfing, until he found a news report on the mob.

**Meanwhile, with the mob**

They finally managed to surround the renegade teacher, as they began closing in. Unfortunately, the Yummy chose that moment to develop its powers. She fired a ball of light at them, and the rest of the mob except the three decided they had enough, and ran away. Just as she was about to attack again, a fire ball connected with her, and Ankh flew down from the skies. "Nice timing!" Dominic said, attempting a high-five. "Well, I'd be here sooner, if that mob hadn't chased her all over town" he sneered back. Dominic put his hand down, as the Yummy emerged from the teacher. "Is it me, or does that look like a dominatrix mixed with Cat Woman?" Dominic observed, as Kitty gave him a judgmental look. "You would be the one to mention that" she said, raising her gun. The others did the same, but before they could attack, the Yummy struck in the blink of an eye, knocking them all down. They got to their feet, to see the Yummy throwing their weapons over a ledge. "Oh, that's just great" Dice said, as the four began backing away. Ankh tried to attack, but the Yummy struck him with a whip, tying him up.

**Back with Austin**

Austin was watching the scene unfold on TV, gripped with the guilt of his friends getting hurt, all because he didn't want to get in trouble some more.

**Back at the plaza**

The Cat Yummy was advancing, as the group was defenseless without their weapons. "What are we going to do?" Kitty asked, as they were back into a corner. "Kitty, if we die here, I just want you to know, I love you" Dominic said, crying. "WHAT?" Kitty replied, but suddenly, a force field that seemed to be made of fog slammed into the Yummy. A figure approached through the fog. It was a man, about a few years older than the group. "Huh, looks like he was right, they do need my help here" the man said. He was revealed to be wearing Black-skinny jeans, and a red t-shirt. He had blond hair, which seemed to fall over his face, like he had just woken up. The most striking thing however, was that he was wearing the OOO driver on his waist!

"What, how?" Ankh said, as the cat yummy pounced him. The boy reached into his pocket, and pulled out three medals. He slotted them in the same way Austin did, and ran the scanner over them, saying "Henshin!" "TAKA! TORA! BATTA!" The scanner sang, as the OOO armor appeared over him. The others stared in disbelief. This included Kazari, who was watching from the sidelines, Kougami, who was watching from his office, Ivan in his, and Austin, who was watching from his TV. The new OOO ran forward, striking the Yummy with the Tora claws. He continued this, gaining more and more cell medals. Kazari just looked on, lost for words. A voice in his ear suddenly shouted "Take down that _other_ OOO or I take more of your medals!" Kazari gulped, not wanting Ivan to destroy any more of his cores, so he leapt from his hiding spot.

"Kazari?" the boy asked. "Don't know you kid, but you're going down all the same" he said, attacking. "Don't think so" he said, replacing the arm and leg medals. "TAKA! UNAGI! CHITA!" the second scanner said, as new, streamlined leg armor appeared on his legs. Kazari tried to strike down, but OOO just moved in a blur of speed, evading the attack. "What?" Kazari said, as the Unagi whips connected with him. "Strange, you seem less sadistic than usual" the boy said, electrocuting him. "Who are you?" Dice called. "My names Scott, and I'm the new Kamen Rider OOO" he said, kicking Kazari. Unfortunately, the Yummy took this opportunity to repossess the teacher. She got to her feet, and ran away, hissing in anger. This distraction allowed Kazari enough time to escape from the Unagi whips, and deliver a punch to Keppei's back.

**Austin's house**

Austin couldn't take it anymore, he hated watching on the sidelines, unable to help his friends. He grabbed his jacket, and ran out the door. He hoped on the ride vendor, and made his way to the fight.

**The Fight**

Scott was having a hard time fighting Kazari, who was gaining the upper hand. "Man, where's Shun with his soccer ball when you need him?" he said to himself, before they all heard the sound of a ride vendor approaching. Austin dismounted, and placed _his_OOO driver on his waist. He quickly transformed, assuming TaToBa combo. "Ok, now I'm completely lost" Dominic said, throwing up his hands. "So are we" Kitty replied, her voice shaking, as Dice and Ankh nodded in agreement. Austin ran forward, striking Kazari with the Medajalibur. "Man, when do I get a cool sword?" Scott asked, admiring the blade. "Don't know, really not worrying about that right now" Austin responded, as Ankh tossed him a medal. Austin replaced the Taka medal with the Raion medal, assuming LaToraBa form. Before Austin went to fight Kazari, he looked down at the other OOO's belt. He noticed the bright yellow medal on it. "Hey, mind if I borrow you're leg medal?" he asked as Scott removed it, and changed into TakaUBa form. "Sure, I guess" he said. Austin replaced the leg medal, as the three began to glow. "RAION! TORA! CHITA!" the scanner sang, but a spark of electricity form the medals caused them to eject the Chita medal. "I guess we can't mix medals, huh." Scott said, picking up his Chita medal. "Yeah, guess not Austin!" Ankh called, tossing him the Zou medal. "RAION! TORA! ZOU!" the ring called out, as Austin rocked Kazari to his knees.

"I don't get it, why are there two of them?" Dice asked freaking out. "Because, I brought Scott here" a voice called to their right. They turned to see another young man sitting on a railing. He had a dark jacket on, a ball cap, and an old-fashioned, pink camera around his neck. "You brought him here?" Ankh asked, his eye twitching. "Yeah, Austin needed some help in this fight, so I brought in re-enforcements" the stranger said. "Who are you?" Kitty asked, and the man smiled. He held up a card, which had a picture of what seemed to be a Kamen Rider on it, but one that was pink, had big, green eyes, and black bars on the helmet. "I'm just a passing through Kamen Rider, remember that" he said, turning his attention back to the fight.

Austin was placing cell medals into the sword, as Scott was getting ready to activate the scanning charge, but a cloud of smoke suddenly filled the plaza. Everyone looked for the source of the smoke, but they neglected to keep eyes on Kazari. He slipped away, into the back of a limousine that was waiting for him. He breathed easier now that he was away from the twin OOO's, but his heart started racing again when he saw Ivan staring him down from the other side of the limo. "Sir, I tried, I really did, but there are two of them now" he said, gesturing. "I know, you obviously didn't stand a chance, but you did fail me" he said, transforming his right arm. He shot forward, and grabbed a Tora medal out of Kazari's chest. The Greeed stared at him, his face plastered with horror. "Oh, don't worry, I won't break it. I will keep it, but I won't break it" he said, putting the medal in his pocket. Kazari sighed as the Limo drove away.

The others had gathered up all the stolen stuff the cat Yummy had taken, at least, that they could find. Not finding Kazari however, both OOO transformed back to human. "Who are you?" Austin asked Scotti, who chuckled. Before he could answer, the mysterious man walked forward, placing an arm around Scott's shoulder. "This is Scott, a Kamen Rider OOO from another dimension" he explained, as they walked to a strange shop. Austin had never noticed it before, but it appeared to be a photography shop. "Well, this is where we take our leave" the man said, opening the door. "Wait, why does he have to leave now?" Austin asked, stopping them. "I'm still grounded, it would help out a lot if he stays here!" "Don't worry kids" the man said. "When one door closes, another one opens!" He said. The group could just make out what seemed to be a giant photo in the main room, with a picture of the TaToBa symbol on it, amidst a shower of cell medals on it, and a giant roman numeral "7" on it. "It was nice to meet you, Austin" Scott said, shaking his hand. "Likewise, I hope we can meet again!" he called, as the two stepped inside the shop. As they closed the door, they could barely see a girl in the window with magenta hair that was done up in pig-tails, and a boy with spikey hair and an undershirt, before a bright light flashed inside. Dice ran forward, and opened the door, only to find an abandoned shop inside.

They just stood there, before Austin remembered. "Oh crap, I have to get home!" he yelled, as they rushed to Dominic's jeep. Ten minutes later, they were dropping Austin off at his house. He ran inside, and quickly opened his textbooks, and began studying. 30 seconds later, the front door opened, and his dad walked in. "Ah, you studying?" he asked noting the text book. "Yep, need to get my grades up" Austin said, looking up from the math in front of him. "And you haven't left the house all while I was gone, good for you!" he said, walking to his study. Scott had lucked out on this. He had left his phone at home, to avoid the tracker.

**Kougami's Office**

Satonaka walked to Kougami's desk, placing some reports on it. "He well be arriving soon" She said, watching the replays of the fight Kougami was scrolling through. "It's odd, this other OOO showing up, isn't it?" she asked, filing her nails. "Yes, it would be helpful, imagine it, _two_O's, but it seems that dream may never be a reality." Kougami pouted.

**Meanwhile, at Dice's apartment**

Dice was in her room, fixing the latest picture of OOO to a giant collage that rested on her wall. She sat back on her bed to admire her handy work, as a bright light flashed all around. Once it subsided, she saw an envelope sitting on the bed next to her. As he picked it up, she could hear something rattling inside. He pulled out a note:

Dear Bethany "Dice" Waddle

I am giving these to you, as Austin will need them in the future, and you will be there to help him. I trust you will get these to him when the time is right, or whenever works for you.

P.S. don't worry, everything will work out in the end, and great work on the poster! :P

-Decade

Dice sat reading the note, tilting the envelope downwards, and she heard something hit the floor. She couldn't believe it, Austin would need him! She hugged the letter to her chest, when she spotted what had fallen out. She reached down, and picked up three medals. They were black, and engraved with a scorpion, a crab, and what was either a lobster or a shrimp.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta X2

Raion, Tora

Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

(Note: The character Scott belongs to Liam315, and I am using him with the author's permission)


	12. The New Hero in Town

**The Danger, the Absence, and the Birth**

Austin was having serious issues with his grounding. The therapist was definitely not helping. For two hours, he just sat in the chair, answering all the lady's questions. It also got annoying when she started prying into his personal life. "You seem more preoccupied than usual" she said, as Austin checked his watch again. "My friends picking me up, we're going to get his brother from the airport" he said, distracted. "Oh, and this would be Dominic's brother?" she asked. Austin nodded, looking out the window. "You know Austin, these sessions are for your benefit" she said. "I am fine, I don't have ASD of, whatever it's called, I don't have any kind of disorder, and I am fine" he said, getting up and pacing.

"Your mother certainty thinks so" "I just, can't talk about it" he said, getting frustrated. "Now, Austin you can always talk about everything, and if someone is making you keep quiet, it's a good idea not to associate with them" she said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Does it have something to do with what happened when you were ten?" she asked, and Austin instantly got rigid and grabbed his wrist, covering the bracelet. "Let's make one thing clear, lady" he said, glaring at her. "That is the one part of my life that is off limits. No one is allowed to talk about, and I never want to think about it again" he said, on the verge of growling.

A honking outside the house got his attention, as he grabbed his bag. "bye" he managed, exiting the house. "Well, that was quite the breakthrough" she said, packing up his file.

Austin climbed into the passenger side of Dominic's jeep. "So, how did it go?" he asked. "Just. Drive" Austin said, and the others could feel the anger radiating off of him. "Ok, this will be a fun ride" Dice said, leaning back in the seat.

**An hour later**

The four arrived at the local airport, as did everyone else it seemed. The airport was very spacious, and had a very modern feel to it. However, the halls seemed to be incredibly packed today, as tons of people walked by, all carrying three heavy bags each. "So, what flight is Hunter on?" Kitty asked, straining to see the list of flights. "Uh, I believe he said it was a Southwest flight" Dominic answered, checking his phone for the text. "There it is, gate 17" Austin said, finding the flight. They made their way through the crowd, and arrived at the gate, to see the passengers. "Man, how are we going to get his attention?" Dominic asked, trying to find his brother in the pack of people spewing from the gate. "I have an idea" Dice said, running back towards the entrance. She returned a few moments later, with a fleet of Tako Candroids flying after her. Suffice to say, a few people started screaming. "Ok guys, just like I told you!" she instructed them, and they flew into the air, turned sideways, and spelled "LOGAN" with their rotating tentacles.

"Way to introduce him to the group subtly" Austin smiled, impressed with her ingenuity. He didn't understand it, but Dice seemed to blush more than usual. It didn't take long before a voice called out "Bro!" "That's him" Dominic said in a proud voice. Walking towards them was a tall, buff man. His hair was short and spikey, and his shirt did little to hide his muscles. "You can stop drooling" he told Deirdre, who was looking at him, _very_intently. Dice was even finding it hard to not stare at Logan "No, no, Austin is the one for you" she whispered to herself. The man smiled, and he seemed to be like a big kid. "Hey Dominic!" he said, pulling him into a big bear hug. "Hey dude, how was Italy?" he asked. "Ah, fun, food, sights, and beautiful women" he responded, before noticing the others. "So who are these guys?" he asked, looking them over. "Thought you'd be picking me up with the football squad" he said, with another smile. "Nah, these are my new friends, Kitty, Dice and," "Austin" Logan said, cutting him off. They just stared at him. "He looks like a Austin" Hunter explained, shrugging his big muscles. And with that, they all set off.

**Outside**

Shelby was sitting in her car, watching the front entrance of the airport. It was odd that Kyle hadn't invited her to this, as the two were considered equivalents in the school hierarchy, and generally did many things together. She had asked Sam to meet her there, as she liked having her around, her own personal servant! As she watched the door, she saw Dominic walk out with his brother Hunter. "Wow, I want one!" she said to herself, smiling as she watched his tan shine in the sun and his muscles flex. However, she was brought crashing down to earth, when she saw Austin and his two lackeys following them. "Oh, no!" she said, getting out of her car.

"Did the air suddenly get colder?" Hunter asked, as Austin, Kitty and Dice froze in horror. "No, she can't be" Kitty asked, turning to the others. "Oh, hey there!" a sultry voice called. "She is" Austin answered.

"Excuse me!" Shelby said, waving her hand. "Hey Dominic, who's your _friend_?" she asked, licking her lips. "Uh, this is my brother, Hunter" he said. "Oh, well if you're new in town, I would be happy to give you a tour" she said, glancing at his pecs. "Sorry, but I think I'll stay with these guys" Hunter said, as they turned to leave. "Austin's a lying, heartless little bitch" she called. Hunter tuned to her and replied "Honey, have you looked in the mirror?" as Austin watched him walk to the jeep, Kitty had a face of pure enjoyment, Dice joined Austin in staring at him. "Hey new friend" they said, following.

**On the freeway**

"Dude, you are the coolest person!" Dice said, as Logan was thrilling them with stories of his time in spent abroad. "What impresses me most, is that you saw Shelby for what she is" Kitty giggled, still on cloud 9. "Yeah, if you date enough girls like I have, you tend to spot the rotten ones faster" he said, putting his arms behind his head. They dropped Austin of at his house, as he was still grounded. "I didn't think people still got grounded" Hunter said, as he and Dominic arrived at his house. "Yeah, well, his parents are a little strict, they didn't exactly take too well to him sneaking out at midnight to go to a party" Dominic answered, locking the jeep. "Ah, well, that makes sense, I guess" he said as they walked inside. "Hey, thanks for letting me crash here tonight" he said, placing his bags on the couch.

"Sure, so how long are you in town for?" Dominic asked. "Oh, a while. I've got work lined up, and it may take a while." He said, grabbing an apple. "That's cool" Dominic said, grabbing leftover Chinese food from the fridge. "What kind of work?" he asked, tossing Hunter one of the bags. "Oh, won't know till I meet with the employer tomorrow" he said, stuffing his face with eggrolls.

**Across town.**

Sam was walking under the freeway, trying to spend as much time away from Shelby as possible. "I don't get how anyone can like her" she said, kicking a rock. "She is the meanest person I have ever met" she thought, lying down on the grassy field next to the overpass. She watched the clouds go by, trying to find shapes in them. She remembered how she and Austin enjoyed staring at the clouds. But that was before she got sick and had to work for Ivan. The sadness filled her heart again, and her arm began twitching again. "Oh great, and now this is acting up" she said, slamming her fist into the ground.

Pain suddenly shot through Sam, as she turned around. No one was around her, but she could have sworn she had heard footsteps. Mezool stood around the corner, her heartbeat was accelerating. "Why is she doing this to me?" she thought, as her medals seemed to burn in her chest. Sam took her leave, as Mezool did the same. "Why does this human fill me with pain?" she thought. "This is the pain of a desire, but what would I gain from wanting a human?" she thought as she walked back to the bar.

"Hey there little lady" a gruff voice said. A biker appeared out of an alley. "What's a pretty little girl like you doing here all alone?" He asked. "Whatever, leave me alone" she said walking away. "Hey, look princess. There's a toll for coming down my street. You're going to enjoy this" he said, grinning maliciously at her. "Ok, will this suffice?" she asked, blasting him with a stream of water. He was thrown through five walls, before he was knocked out. "You're right, I did enjoy that" she smiled, walking off.

**The next day**

Ms. Nelborn hadn't shown up the next day. All the rest of the school was saying she quit, but Dominic, Austin and the others new the truth. "How long can a Yummy stay inside its host?" Dice asked, as Austin just shrugged. "Indefinitely I guess" he replied, before saying bye to his friends and leaving with his dad. A red feather suddenly dropped from the sky. "Hey Ankh" Kitty called, as he hopped down in front of them. "We gotta move, I found it" he said, a gleam in his eyes. "Wait, what about Austin?" Dice asked, not sure they could take down the Yummy themselves. "Nah, we'll be fine" Ankh said, spreading his wings.

They followed him, until he landed a few feet from their ride vendors. "It's here" he whispered, and the others grabbed their weapons. Kougami had given them each a specialized weapon, Kitty got a handgun, Dice got a shovel, and Dominic got a baseball bat. Each had been designed to disrupt the flow of energy in cell medals, ruining the magnetic energy that kept Yummies held together. They followed Ankh, making sure to stay low and quiet. As they entered an abandoned building, they heard a noise creak from the rafters above. They looked to see the Yummy, staring at them. "Great, she's been completely taken over" Dominic complained, as it hopped down, striking each of them, before vanishing. The four hit the floor, hard. KItty had a broken rib, Dominic's shin was bleeding, and Dice coughed up blood.

"Well, this is going about as well as before" Dice said, wincing at the pain in her side. "Oh crap, we have a problem" she said, as the Yummy appeared in the doorway. "Oh great, now it really is the end" Dominic whined, smacking the ground. "Ah man, where's Kippei?" Kitty asked, gripping her broken rib.

"Hey!" a voice rang out, as the four turned to see Hunter walking towards them. "Hunter, get out of here!" Dominic yelled, as the Yummy was getting ready to charge again. "Sorry little bro, but I got a job to do!" he said, smiling. He put down the container on his back, and opened it, pulling out a belt! It had an Octagonal shape, a coin slot on the left side, a twist knob on the right, and a sphere on the center. "What is that?" Ankh asked, as all their eyes widened. He swung it around his waist, and pulled out a cell medal. "Henshin!" he called, as everyone present gasped. He flicked it into the air and caught it in his left hand, before slotting it into the coin slot. He then turned to knob twice, and the sphere on the front opened, with a "pop" A giant aura sphere surrounded him, as several capsules surrounded him, opening at his knees, elbows, shoulders, thighs, back and left pectoral. They generated silver, gold and green armor, which fit over a black body suit, like OOO. The sphere vanished, as a clear dome slid down over his head, as the rest of a helmet formed, and a giant "U" shaped visor closed over it, finishing the suit. "Kamen Rider Birth, ready to earn!" he said, posing.

The others just stared, as he clapped his hands together. "Hey bro, I'll take it from here!" he said, pulling another cell medal from his drum, and slotted it into the belt. He turned the knob again, and it announced "DRILL ARM", as the capsule on his right arm opened, and metal parts came out, and grew, assembling into a small drill on his arm. He struck the Yummy, as Cell medals flew out of it. The medals actually stuck to the weapon, as he collected more and more. He finally managed to back the Yummy into a corner, and struck with the drill. He soon opened a hole in it, as soon grabbed the teacher and yanked her out of the Yummy. Once the others got her to a safe distance, he placed another medal in the belt, and it announced "BREAST CANNON", as the capsule on his chest opened, and the machinery inside formed a giant cannon on his chest. He placed two more medals in the belt, and it announced "CELL BURST", before he fired a concentrated blast of cell energy at the Yummy, destroying it.

"Medals!" Ankh almost cried, letting them run through his fingers. However, Hunter placed another medal in his belt, and the capsule on his left shoulder opened as the belt said "CRANE ARM". He knocked Ankh out of the way, and the coins all latched onto the wench, as he flung it into the drum. "Hey-hey, leave some for the rest of us, _Greedy_" he said, pulling the cell medal out of the belt, and the armor retracted. "What was that about?" Kitty asked, helping Dominic to his feet as Dice helped Ankh up. "Yeah bro, Ankh gets the medals" Dominic said, approaching Hunter. "Well, times have changed" he said, tilting his head in an adorable way. "See, I've got a job to do. I need to earn 100 million cell medals. And with how many I use to fight with, well let's just say I'll be taking all the medals from now on" he smiled, picking the drum up.

Shintaro just watched on in awe, as the Birth user walked off. He had been watching the entire fight. "Man, I wish I could have gotten that" he thought in his head, taking off himself. The others just stood in silence, watching Hunter walk off. "Looks like there's a new player in town" Ankh hissed, wringing his hand. "Yeah, with the face of an _angel_!" Kitty said, mesmerized.

**Kougami's office**

Kougami watched Logan walking off, having been watching the entire fight on his flat screen. "SUBARASHII!" He exclaimed, knocking a bowl of frosting to the wall. "He is doing so well as Birth!" he grinned, pleased with how well this project turned out. He finished a cake, as he hummed "Happy Birthday" to himself.

However...

**Ivan's office**

"I, am, _**very**___pissed off right now" Ivan growled, as he placed another Tricera medal into his body, and his chest suddenly gained a triceratops' face on it, the frill forming a high collar on him. "One hero was bad enough, but two? I have to speed up the experiment" he said, pulling the remaining Ptera medals from the box. "Time to set Sam loose" he said, a dark grin flashed on his face.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta X2

Raion, Tora

Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi


	13. Feelings and Friends

**The Open House, the Trap, and the Devil**

Austin was very on edge this week. None of them could figure out why, until they got to homeroom on Thursday. As it turned out, it was the school's open house on Friday. "What's wrong? I always like having my teachers meet my parents" Kitty said, filling out the form. "Yeah, but what with this grounding and all, my parents will be grilling my teachers about my grades, and I don't want my teachers giving my mom more ammo for the therapist" he said, dropping the form in the trash can.

She just shrugged, deciding to let the issue drop. "So tell me about this, Birth power Hunter has" He said, segueing into a new conversation. "Well, it's more technologically based than OOO, and he doesn't form switch" she said, counting off the aspects on her fingers. "Also, he can attract the cell medals to himself, and he collects them in this, milk jug type thing, looks really old fashioned." She finished. Austin was actually glad Birth was around. If Hunter could hold his own against a Yummy, it meant less sneaking out for Austin. And that meant Austin would hopefully be ungrounded soon.

**That Night**

Austin walked into his room, and found his mom sitting at his desk. "What now?" he whined. "So I got a call from school" she said, tapping his backpack. "They said open house is tomorrow." "Yeah, so?" Austin asked, grabbing his textbook. "So, your father and I would like to go" she answered. "Well goody for you" he said, starting the chapter on Mollusks. "Well they said there is a list of classes that you need to give us" she said, and Austin rolled his eyes as he read about Bivalves. "Austin, when were you going to give us this list?" she asked "Um, never?" he replied, never taking his eyes off the book. "Austin, we want to meet you teachers, why do you not want us to meet your teachers?" she asked, walking over to him. "Because you're going to ask about my behavior and feed it to that damn quack of a therapist and have me shipped to an institution!" he exploded, slamming the book shut.

"Scott, that woman is not a quack, she is trying to help you overcome your anti-social behavior and rejoin society, and if you think we shouldn't meet your teachers because they know something we don't, than we are definitely going." She said, storming out.

**The next morning**

Austin was once again driven to school by his dad, as he was thinking about what all his teachers could tell them that would be used against him. He was glad to see his friends, as he met them beneath the tree, while Ankh sat on a branch. "So whose parents are coming to open house?" Dominic asked, as he and Kitty both raised their hands. "Good lord, you're actually _squealing_" Austin told Kitty, who seemed giddy about this event. "Sorry" she apologized. "Man, I really don't want my parents to come to this thing" Austin whined, lying on the grass, and looked up at Dice. She seemed awfully quiet this morning. "Dice, you ok? You have a problem with your parents too?" She didn't answer; instead, she got up and walked away. "What's wrong with her?" Dominic asked, getting ready to follow. "No, I'd better go" Austin said, following.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked, placing a hand on Dice's shoulder. She turned around, a tear falling down her face. "You just don't get it" she said, walking to the building as the bell rang.

**At lunch**

Dice was sitting alone, under a secluded tree, eating the turkey sandwich she had packed himself. "Mind if I join you?" a voice asked. He looked up to see Austin standing there. "It's fine, I was leaving anyways" she said, getting up. "No, it's not" Scott said, grabbing her arm. Dice reluctantly sat down, as her pulse began to quicken from Austin's touch. "I don't know what it is that I said earlier, but I am so sorry" Austin said, holding Dice's hand. "It's what you were saying about parents" She responded, after several moments. "Why, are they awful parents?" Austin asked, guessing. "They're dead" Dice responded. Austin felt a heavy weight sink in his chest. "Oh man, Dice, I am so sorry" Austin said, tears forming in his eyes. "It's ok; you had no way of knowing" Dice said, turning away and putting a piece of gum in her mouth. "No, it's not ok" Austin replied. "Friends should always know this stuff, or at least not say stuff like that" he said, looking away. Dice blushed, and Scott finally had to ask. "Why do you keep blushing like that?" "Oh, it's just, you've never called me your friend before" Dice replied, trying to avoid eye contact. Austin smiled, glancing down. "That's because you're not my friend" Austin said, and Dice felt like a sword was rammed through her heart. "I'm not?" she asked, looking Austin in the eye. "No dude, you're so much more than a friend" "Your best friend?" Dice asked, her eyes widened.

"Na, you're so much more, you are more like" Scott said, trying to find the right words. However, Dice's instincts suddenly took over, and she threw herself on Austin, and kissed him. "Hey, whoa" Austin said, his breath heavy as Dice pulled away. "I'm sorry" Dice immediately said, turning around, her face as red as Ankh's feathers. "That was" Austin said, his brain feeling like it was floating in whisky. "I should go" Dice said, quickly, getting up. Austin watched her walk away, as he suddenly noticed something. "Thanks, for the gum" he mumbled, still in shock.

**At Kougami's**

Hunter was sitting on the Couch, in-between Goto and Erika. "So, how long till the boss gets back?" he asked, feeling the awkwardness in the air. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" Kougami answered, walking through the doors. "Whose birthday is it?" Hunter asked, getting to his feet, having fallen off the couch. He just grinned as he walked back to his desk. "Mr. Kougami believes in the birth of all things being a blessing, so he celebrates anything new happening a birth" Erika explained, filing her nails. "That's why he bakes so many cakes" Goto explained.

"Oh, well, that's understandable he said, eyeing the stack of cakes. "You have done a spectacular job as Birth!" Kougami cheered, as he placed a box on the table. "From this day forward, you are to fight as Kamen Rider Birth, gathering 100 million cell medals!" he said, as he opened the box. "And, Goto is to be your back-up!" he said, as they all looked inside to see a cake with the Birth symbol on it, and a second Birth Buster. "Sir?" he asked, picking up the gun. "Yes, the way Birth was designed, he would work best if he had back up" Kougami explained. "So, I have decided to promote you, to being Hunter's partner in this mission!" he cheered. "Alright, we're a team now Brotou!" Hunter said through a mouthful of cake, patting him on the back.

**That Night, at Open house**

Austin was still in a daze from what had happened at lunch. He had barely noticed that he was now at the school, until his dad asked where his first class was. He tried to find Dice, before he slapped his face, feeling stupid for thinking he would be here. "I have got to pay more attention" Austin thought, as he found Kitty sitting on a bench. "Where are your parents?" he asked. "They were busy" she said, sighing "Dinner rushed at the restaurant will do that" Austin agreed, waiting for his parents. "Is there something different about you?" she asked. "No, why would something be different?" Austin replied, too quickly. "Ok, sorry I asked" she said. Austin wasn't sure what it had all meant, but he was sure of one thing. Telling everyone Dice had kissed him would only make matters worse, so de resolved to keep his mouth shut till he got a chance to talk to her later.

**At the park**

Dice was walking along the path that wound through the trees. She couldn't believe she had done that! "I am so stupid!" she cursed, slamming her foot into a tree. "Wh-Whoa!" a voice called, as red feathers began to fall, followed by their owner. "Ankh, were you stalking me?" Dice asked, once again red. "Yes, well, no if you get the courts involved" he said as he got to his feet. She suddenly realized a brand new horror "You weren't watching us at lunch, were you?" she asked. "When you and Austin went at it like rabbits? Yes" Ankh replied. "We didn't go _that_ far" Dice corrected him. "You won't tell him?" she asked. "No, or at least, not unless it would benefit me to tell him." "Why?" Dice asked, mortified. "Because, in my experiences in dealing with humans, either you have something they want and you give it to them, or they stab you in the back to take it" Ankh answered, his tone getting darker as he added this last part.

"Who have you been hanging out with?" Dice asked. Ankh didn't answer, but he closed his eyes, as the memory of the Tora claws piercing his chest suddenly flashed into his mind. His eyes suddenly shot open, as he got to his feet. "We need to get to the school, now" he said, grabbing Dice by the shirt. As they ran, they saw a Taka Candroid urge them onward.

**Meanwhile, back at the School**

Austin's parents were walking out of the classroom, looking cheerful, until a voice echoed the quad, dooming Austin's future. "Oh, hi Mr. and Mrs. Whitaker!" Shelby said, using her fake, perky voice. "Hi Shelby" his mom said, shaking her hand. "How are you?" she asked. "Oh, fine. Just trying to keep this place a cheerful institute of learning and friendship. Because Friendship is the most important thing for the development of the future" Shelby answered, as the four felt nauseas. "Geez, even the cast of 'My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic' would gag at that!" Austin said, as Dominic turned to look at him. "You're a Brony too?" he asked, a surprised look on his face. "Oh look Austin, it's Shelby" his mom said, talking to him like he was a three year old. "I am aware of who she is" he answered, looking away. "Austin, do you have anything to say to her?" his father asked. "No, I have nothing to say to the Dark Queen of the Viper Pit from Hell" he said, sneering back.

"Austin, that hurt" Shelby whined in a fake, hurt voice. Austin and all the others saw through her, but unfortunately, his parents didn't. "This poor girl has been through such a tragic loss, why do you keep painting her as a bad guy, don't you know that makes her feel worse?" his dad said, gesturing to Shelby. "But no one ever asked me if I was ok!" Austin found himself saying before he could stop himself. "What are you talking about?" they asked, as Ashley smirked. "Oh, you mean, they don't know?" Shelby said, in a conniving voice. "Tell them Austin" Shelby said, circling him. "Tell them how you did _nothing_" she said, anger seeping into her voice. "What are you saying?" his father asked. "I know she is feeling loss, pain, betrayal, all of that" Austin said, trying to control his anger.

"How can you possibly know what Shelby has been through?" his mother asked, as the anger finally ruptured inside him. "BECAUSE I WAS THERE, I SAW THE WHOLE THING!" Austin yelled, his face turning red. The whole quad was in silence, staring at them. A few murmurs began starting, before green lightning struck the floor. Austin rolled away as quickly as possible, to see Uva standing in the door. "Oh, I'm sorry, was this invitation only?" he smirked, walking down the stairs, "Hope I wasn't interrupting anything important." "Oh, I have _so_been looking forward to this!" Austin sneered, grabbing the OOO driver in his pocket. However, before he could transform, his parents grabbed him. "Mom, dad, what are you doing?" he asked, fighting their grip. "No, the question is, what are _you_ doing?" she asked "That man is dangerous, and you want to try to fight him? You really do need that therapist!" his father said, as they pulled him into a crowd of fleeing people.

"Austin!" Kitty cried, over the shouting and yelling. "Find Ankh!" Austin called back, before he was lost in the see of people. Dominic managed to find Kitty and made his way through the crowd. "What are we going to do?" he asked. "Dominic, go get your brother, if the Greeed are attacking, we'll need Birth" she said, as he left in the other direction. "And I will try and find Ankh and Dice" she said, setting off in the remaining direction. She ran outside, seeing a ride vendor. She emptied her pockets of cell medals into the machine, and "bought" as many Candroids as she could. "Find Dice, find Ankh!" she commanded them, as the tiny robots flew and ran off.

**Elsewhere in the city**

Sam was walking down an alley, on her way back to the school. Shelby had sent her out for groceries, when the same pain shot through her chest that had been shooting through her body this whole week. She was suddenly slammed against the wall by the mysterious Japanese High School girl. "You again!" she said, as she stared at her. "Why are you doing this to me? What are you doing to me?" she asked, shaking her. "I don't know!" Sam said. "I get this feeling when I'm around you, a feeling, that I don't know what it is!' the girl said, tears streaming down her face. Suddenly, her eyes glowed blue again. "It makes me want, to want to do this" she said, slamming her lips against hers. Sam was shocked, not understanding this, she was straight, but at the same time, it felt right. As they made out, the beast in her chest roared, in triumph. "What do you feel?" she asked, her breath heavy. "I feel, I feel something, cold and clammy" she said, opening her eyes to see herself lip-to-lip with the Greeed she had shot, Mezool.

Sam screamed at the top of her lungs as she fell away, and began to crawl backwards. "Is there something wrong with my appearance?" Mezool asked, following her. "N-no, it's just I" she said, before she realized she had lost feeling in her right arm again. She looked down to see her arm was once again transformed. "No, NO!" she yelled, before she held up her left hand, to see it too, was now monstrous. "Oh no, the infection, it's spreading! What are _you_doing to me?" she yelled at Mezool, half angry, half crying. "What are you?" she asked, just as shocked. Sam gave her a funny look, in response to her comment. "Come, let's leave this place" she said, picking her up, carrying her off into the night.

**At the school**

A small group had found themselves in a classroom, Austin and his parents included. Austin's parents had bolted the doors shut, as the group that had followed them cowered in the center of the room. "I better call the police" his mother said, as his father went to secure the windows. "Ankh, you better get me out of here" Scott whispered to himself.

Out in the hall, the Greeed were stalking the halls. "Come out, OOO!" Uva called, as he sliced through the lockers in front of him. "Haven't seen him" Gamel said, running up. "We need a scout, and I can't find anyone" Uva said, looking at Gamel. "Oh, right, I got it" Gamel said, placing a cell medal in his head. A Yummy fell out of him, and the Tasmanian Devil Yummy stood up, growling. "Perfect" Kazari said, glancing from around the corner.

**At the Greeed's hideout**

Sam awoke to see Mezool staring at her, in her true form. She jolted up, to find herself in an abandoned bar. "What is this place?" she asked, noticing her surroundings. "It is our hideout" she said, walking to the bar, and grabbing a bottle. "Here, drink this, it will help" she said, handing her a bottle of...whisky. "Sorry, I know what I need, and it isn't a hangover" she said, putting the bottle down. Her hands were still monstrous, as she began crying again. "Let me see this" Mezool said, grabbing Sam's arms. "These, these can't be" she whispered, backing away. "I know what they are, they mean I'm dying" she said, thinking about whether she really did want the Whisky or not. "No, that's not a disease" Mezool said, getting to her feet. "Those, those are the hands of, _him_" she gulped, slumping into a booth. "Who?" Sam asked, lifting his head. "Our, brother." She said, regaining her composure. "Brother?" "Yes, Giru was his name" she said, placing her head in her palms. "Giru, but why would I have his arms?" she asked, walking over to her. "Because, I now know what I have been sensing in you" she said, turning to look at her.

"His medals, inside of you" she said, as Sam backed away. "What? I have medals _inside_ me?" she asked, gripping her chest. "Yes, and they are slowly turning you into a Greeed" she said, as a strange blue cloth fell behind her. "What the heck is that?" Sam asked, pointing to the curtain. "I don't really know" she said. "They just tend to fall wherever we go" she said, running her hand over the fabric. "Oh, and there's the final piece of proof now" she said, pointing to Sam's shoulders. Sam glanced down to see a purple fabric had fallen on her. "But, it's impossible!" she said, holding it up. "It isn't" she said, putting her arms around her.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta

Raion, Tora

Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi


	14. The Blazing Combo

**The Fallen Phoenix, the Mutation, and the Blazing Combo**

Dice and Ankh arrived to the School to find the entire police force sitting outside. "What's happening?" she asked, to no one in particular. "A gang broke into the school and released a wild animal!" someone in the crowd answered. "I don't see Austin! Or the others" Dice said. "There still inside" Ankh replied as he set off for the south entrance. "You can't walk through a police barricade!" Dice informed him, as Ankh began looking around. "Yes, we can" he replied, throwing a fireball into a clearing, drawing attention away from the two figures running into the school. As they ran through the halls, they literally ran into Dominic and Kitty. "Oh hey, there you guys are!" she said, as they got up. "Are all of them here?" Ankh asked, as Dominic nodded. "Great, where's Austin?" Dice asked, looking for him. "We lost him in the crowd" Dominic explained, as Ankh seared a poster. "We'll go find him, you two try to find the Greeed" Ankh commanded, and they split up.

**In the school**

Kitty and Dominic were trying to find the Greeed, when they were suddenly shoved into a room, as the door locked. "That ought to hold them!" Kazari whispered, as he returned to his fellow Greeed. "Not one word about being locked in an empty classroom together" Kitty hissed to Dominic, who just shook his head.

**In the boarded up room**

Austin was tired of staying in the classroom full of panicking students, faculty and parents, all who seemed to be praying for OOO to show up "Oh if only they knew the irony" he thought. "Don't worry, everyone, the police are on their way, and they will get the wild animals and gang members in the hall." His mom told everyone, and they cheered. "A lot of good that will do" Austin thought. "Austin, what's wrong, are you scared?" his mom asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. "No, I'm more agitated at being trapped in here!" he said "Well, honey, we aren't trapped" she said, but Austin pointed to the bolts they placed on the door. "Well, we have to keep those maniacs out of here!" she said, as everyone began screaming when a scratch sound was heard as the door. Austin's parents grabbed him and pulled him to the corner of the room with them and the others before he could ask who was there. "Austin, you in there?" Ankh asked, his voice _very_annoyed. "Ankh, yeah, I'm in here" he answered, breaking free of his parents.

"Well hurry up and get out of there!" he said. "Yeah, they bolted the door shut!" Austin answered, folding his arms. "Austin, what are you talking about, you are not leaving this room!" his dad said, as they grabbed his arms. "Alright, get back from the door!" Ankh called. "WHAT?" everyone but Austin screamed, as the door and part of the wall was sent flying, and Ankh was standing in the door, in all his true Greeed glory. More screaming erupted, as Austin's parents tried to protect their son. "Seriously guys, I know him!" Austin said, finally breaking free. "But Austin, that's a monster!" his mom said, but Austin just walked past her, to greet his friend. "Took you long enough" Austin said, folding his arms. "Oh, you're chastising me now?" Ankh asked, as Austin just chuckled. "Let's get to it, buddy!" he said as the two ran down the hall. Dice rounded the corner. "Oh, you found him" she said. "Dice" Austin said, unsure of what to say. "Look, we can deal with this later, let's just find the Yummy first!" Ankh told them, as they three set off.

**At the Greeed's hideout**

"I just don't get it, why would I have medals inside my body?" Sam asked yet _again_, clearly drunk on the fourth bottle of whisky she had. "You should lay off that stuff" Mezool said, placing a box of pizza at Sam's feet. "Thought you wanted me to feel better" she said, grabbing a slice. "Feel better, not drink yourself into a coma" Mezool replied in a snarky voice. She suddenly got a weird look in her eyes, as she stood up. "What, are we going to make out again?" Sam asked through a mouth of pepperoni. Mezool shot her a look; "No, I need to go attend to something, you, STAY" she commanded, walking out of the bar.

**Back at the School**

It didn't take long for the three to find the Tasmanian Devil Yummy, as it was tearing up the hall way. "So what do you recommend for this one?" Austin asked, placing the belt on his waist and holding out his hand. "Here, try these" he said, depositing three medals in Austin's hand. They were the Kobura, Kamakiri and the other red medal! "But I though you said you didn't want me using your medals?" Austin said as he placed them in the belt. "Just don't lose it" he said, as Austin ran the scanner over it. "Henshin!" he said, as the scanner sang in response "KOBURA! KAMAKIRI! KONDORU!" as the red ring docked with the Orange and Green ones. Austin looked at his legs, to see bright red armor decorating it, with three gold talons on each foot. The eyes of the Kobura Yummy lit up, and Austin could see the Yummy in night vision, as he extended the blades on his arms. He ran forward, slicing to counter the Yummies own whirlwind of blades. "Austin, kick it!" Ankh called, and Austin prepared his legs to kick, and a glow surrounded them, as the talons began shining brightly. He swiped with his leg, and saw aura blades extending from it.

"Ah, nice!" he said, spinning around, slicing the Yummy with all his weapons, until he managed to cut off all the blades. "Yo Austin!" Hunter yelled, running up behind them. "Get down!" he ordered, as he placed the clip of the birth buster over the muzzle, and his belt called out "CELL BURST!" as he fired a huge ball of energy the reduced the Yummy to cell medals. Ankh was about to grab them, when Logan used the crane arm to collect them.

"Oh, right, the cell medal mission" Austin said to himself, having temporarily forgotten why Birth was at odds with Ankh. "Hey there Austin!" Logan called, as the crane arm retracted. "So this is Birth" Austin said, impressed. "Yep, the latest tech from Kougami Industries." He said, gesturing to the suit in a grand fashion. Austin quickly transformed back, and handed Ankh his medal. "Here, you wanted this back?" Austin asked, as Ankh just stared, surprise on his face.

He turned to Logan; "Well, it works" Austin said, as they went to find the Greeed. Along the way, they heard banging on a door to the Chemistry lab. Austin and Hunter each jumped to either side. "3,2,1" Austin mouthed to Hunter, and he yanked the door open, and Dominic and Kitty fell out. "Oh, good, we did find you guys!" Kitty said, as Dominic helped her to her feet. "So many things could be said about this right now" Austin said, as Hunter gave Dominic a noogie. "Later" Ankh suggested, and the set off, only to hear; "Stop right there!" the six turned to see Austin's parents.

"Where are you all going?" his mom asked, as they caught up with them. "We are trying to defeat the monsters in this place" Hunter explained, not understanding her question. "That is way too dangerous!" she said. "Why don't you just leave this to the professionals? I mean, aren't there people trained to deal with situations like this?" his father asked. "Yeah, _we _are" Dominic answered, groaning.

"Like it or not, this is a problem that we have to deal with!" Kitty explained. The two adults just looked at each other, not sure what to do. "Oh for the love of the Tiki gods, just bring them with us!" Dice urged, and Dominic grabbed their arms, as the eight set off down the halls.

They tried to turn down a hall, only to find a group of Pseudo Yummies blocking the door. "Not this way!" Austin yelled, as they ran down a different hall. Unfortunately, they still kept finding pseudo-Yummies at every exit they tried.

The eight ran down the final hall, as the three Greeed continued stalking them. "There's nowhere to run!" Kazari taunted, "He's right, we have the exits blocked!" Uva added, as Dice looked around a wall to see pseudo-Yummies blocking the final doors. "He's right, how are we going to get out?" She asked, as Austin looked around. "There is no way we will all make it out of this unscathed" Dominic hissed. "Well, what if mister monster here makes a distraction?" Austin's dad asked, grabbing Ankh. "No dad" Austin objected, pulling Ankh to his side. "Austin, he's a monster, just like all these others, why don't we let them deal with him while we get out of here?" "Because, Ankh isn't a monster, he's my friend" Austin answered, as Ankh's eyes shot open wide.

_Friends? Please, Ankh is just a tool to me, and tools are meant to be used and thrown away"_

A voice called in Ankh's mind, a memory from 800 years ago. Ankh shook the voice out of his head. "Friends?" he whispered. "But you hardly know him" his mom asked quizzically. "He has my back, and I have his, that's all I need to know about him for us to be friends" Austin answered. "A-HA" three voices yelled, as the group turned to see the Greeed staring at them. "Well, if it isn't Ankh and friends?" Uva cackled, as Gamel scratched his head. "Are there more of you?" he asked, counting the humans. "Doesn't matter how many of them there are" Kazari snarled, extending his claws, "We'll just blast them to pieces!" he said, charging his blast attack, as the others did the same. Ankh suddenly felt a pain strike through him, as a cracking sound was heard.

"GO!" Ankh yelled, throwing the team behind a wall, as the other Greeed put their hands together, fusing their attacks. Ankh rushed forward, his arms open, ready to absorb the blast. Austin, Kitty, Dice, Dominic, Hunter and Austin's parents watched, as Ankh tearfully said "Goodbye, Austin, my friend".

The three Greeed's attacks collided, tearing through Ankh. The others could just watch in horror as their friend was reduced to a pile of cell medals, and one of his cores shattered. One of the Batta Medals was sent flying, and Uva caught it. "That was easier than I thought" Kazari gloated, swinging his arms. "And now, to reclaim our medals" Uva said, as the three walked to the pile. "Didn't think we could _break_medals" Gamel wondered aloud, as Uva and Kazari turned to look at him, Kazari in guilt, and Uva in curiosity. This gave Austin the chance he needed. He parents tried to grab him, but it was too late. Austin left the hiding spot, and was now standing between the three Greeed and the pile of what had been his friend. Something was shining in the pile, and Austin picked up a complete set of Red Core medals from the pile, and put them into the OOO Driver. "Aw, isn't that cute?" Kazari taunted, "Austy's going to avenge Ankhy!" "You got that right!" Austin said, running the scanner over the red medals. "TAKA! KUJAKU! KONDORU! TAJAAAADORUUUU!" the scanner sang out as the red armor locked together, and unlike the previous combos, the Taka helmet began to glow as the wings became more prominent, a clear shield slid down over the helmet, and the eyes turned red. "From the ashes of the fallen Ankh," Austin said, as energy feathers appeared on his back, resembling a peacock's tail "The Phoenix TaJaDoru rises!" The feathers detached themselves, and rocketed toward the Greeed, like missiles.

"Austin..." his parents gasped, seeing their son transformed before their eyes. "Yeah, he's a superhero, that's where he's been vanishing to" Kitty said, matter-of-factly.

Wings then sprouted from his back, and Austin took flight. The symbol on his chest glowed, summoning the TaJa Spinner on his left arm. He pointed it, and massive fireballs launched from it, striking the three below. The trio had no way to stop him, as he was able to fly though all their attacks. The talons on his feet shown, and he delivered a flying side kick through all three, leaving an energy slash in his path. He continued the pattern of slicing and blasting, until a glow burst from Kazari and Gamel. Dominic jumped forward, seeing the medals flying through the air, and caught them in his catcher's met. "Yes, Major leagues, here I come!" he cheered, before Kitty shoved him out of the way. "Austin, finish them now!" she cried, as Austin opened the shield to find the seven cell medals sitting inside. He flicked three away, and replaced them with the red cores and ran the scanner over them. "TAKA! KUJAKU! KONDORU! GIN! GIN! GIN! GIN! GIGA SCAN!" it cried, as the shield spun into a vortex of flames, incasing TaJaDoru in fire, like a phoenix.

"Magna Blaze!" Austin yelled, dashing at his foes. However, just before he could make contact, a torrent of water pushed him out of the way, extinguishing the blaze. The Greeed turned to see Mezool standing there, in her complete form. "Mezool!" Gamel cried running up to her. "You should be resting" he said, hugging her. "Don't worry Gamel, I feel fine" she said, hugging him back. "So you came to rescue us, did ya? Uva asked, walking over to her. "Gamel, yes, you two?" she gestured to her brothers. "Not so much"

After sneering, the four took off. Austin and the others just stood around the pile of cell medals that had been Ankh, before Dice kneeled down, and began scooping up what remained. They managed to collect all the medals, as they walked out of the building. Austin's parents walked to him. "So, the reason for the change in behavior, the absences, all of that, was because you are OOO?" his mother asked. "Yeah, I hope you guys are ok with this, because whether you like it or not, I have to keep fighting, to keep our city safe." He said, as his parents drew him into a hug. "Of course we understand" his mother said "We couldn't be more proud, having a super hero for a son!" his dad said, scuffling his hair. "Besides, if we were ok with you being gay at one time, what makes you think we wouldn't be ok with your other identity?" they asked, as the others looked on.

**Later, when the school was deserted**

Ivan walked into the hall, the very hall Ankh had been defeated in, with his aid and a small box of cell medals. He reached under a trophy case, to find a lone red core medal. "So this is what's left of the mighty Ankh?" he sneered, dropping the red medal in the box, as the two walked away. "Soon, he'll be playing for my team" he added, closing the door. "Oh, you mean he'll become evil, with us!" the aid said enthusiastically, and the sound of a slap resonated though the night air.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka, Kujaku, Kondoru

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta

Raion, Tora, Chita

Sai, Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi


	15. Power on the Rise

**The Dino-Team, the Eels, and the Birthday**

**One Week Later**

Austin was lying on his back, staring at the ceiling. It was still hard for him to deal with the loss of Ankh. It still got to him, hearing Ankh call him a friend. However, they all agreed, Ankh would want them to continue on with the mission. With this in mind, Austin tried not to dwell on the fact, instead, he chose to think about the kiss that happened between him and Dice. It still didn't make since to him. "Dice is my best friend, why would she try that?" Austin asked himself, his face looking puzzled, "I mean, sure, she's cute; with her shaggy brown hair, nice tan, smile, she is pretty hot..." Austin sat straight up at this "Did I just call Dice hot?" he thought.

Austin shook that thought out of his head, as he looked over at his desk, where the medals were laying. Austin had been going over all his usable combos before he got bored and decided to take a nap, which he often did when bored, especially during class. He picked up the medals, and began putting them in his pocket, before he heard his parents call him from living room. Austin ran down stairs, as he saw his parents watching the TV. "What is it?" he asked. "Have you seen this?" his mom asked, as Austin saw a swarm of Eel-like Yummy rampaging at the boardwalk. "Why didn't you hear about this?" his dad asked. "Ankh always sensed them for us" Austin shrugged, as he headed out the door.

**At the Greeed Hideout**

Mezool was returning, as Sam was just waking up. "Hey sweetie!" she called, sitting next to her. "H-How did it go?" Sam asked as she let out a yawn. "Oh, very good. We should have a massive amount off cell medals from this one" she assured her, as Uva walked in from his special room in the Bar. He did a double take as he saw Sam, rubbing his eyes. "Oh, right we have a pet now" he mumbled, sitting at the bar. "Sam isn't out pet, she's my girlfriend!" Mezool corrected him.

**The Boardwalk**

The swarm of Yummy was running all over the place, causing chaos. Austin arrived, as he suddenly saw Birth amidst the swarm. "How the hell did you get here so fast?" Austin asked, grabbing a handful of coins from his pocket. "We got an alert, where were you?" Hunter said, as Austin was wondering "We?" His thought was answered as a blast shot from his right, striking the Yummy. Austin turned to see that Goto was there, holding a Birth Buster. "Oh, hey Goto!" Austin called, as he nodded in recognition. Austin looked at the medals he grabbed. "Taka, Wani, and Shachi. Dammit" Austin cursed, grabbing another handful. "Kamakiri, Kame, and Kuwagata. Dammit, one more!" Austin said, pulling out another handful "Sai, Batta, and Tako, well, this will work" Austin mumbled, as he placed the green medals in the belt. "Henshin!" Austin yelled, sliding the scanner over the medals "KUWAGATA! KAMAKIRI! BATTA! GA-GATA-GATAKIRIBA!" it sang, as the full combo enveloped him. Austin yelled for about 30 seconds, before creating his own swarm. The clones ran forward, slicing through the eels. They then grouped together, firing a wave of lightning. The GataKiriBa clones then grouped together, firing their own lightning. "You wanna double team them?" Hunter asked, grabbing his own Birth Buster.

"Sure!" all 60 clones answered at once, and thy started running towards the enemy. They surrounded them, and Birth charged his finisher, as GataKiriBa did the same. "SCANNING CHARGE!/ CELL BURST!" the two gadgets cried, as Birth fired a blast of energy, and GataKiriBa kicked them after kick, causing them to explode in a shower of cells. One GataKiriBa stood up, before promptly falling to his knees. "You ok, Whitaker?" Goto asked, helping him up. "Yeah, and there's the hangover feeling again!" Austin mumbled to himself, as he cancelled the transformation. "Here, you may need this" Goto said, handing Austin a new Candroid. "Ok, why?" Austin asked, not getting it. "That thing is designed to detect Yummy, it's how we know about these attacks" Hunter answered, collecting all the fallen cell medals.

"Well, I guess that's a plus" Austin shrugged, pocketing the Candroid. As Hunter finished securing the Cell medals in the drum, he placed a handful of them in Austin's hand. "Thanks" he replied, taking off again. "No prob bro!" Hunter called, as he and Goto took off as well.

Unbeknownst to the three, four of the Eel Yummy had managed to survive. They lumbered off, full of cell medals.

**The Greeed Hideout**

Uva was sitting at the bar, teaching himself the human past time of "Solitaire", with a deck of cards he swiped from the local convenience store. He finished one set, when Gamel suddenly pounded the bar, causing the cards to go flying. "You know, that was the third time I tried that" he grunted, turning to see Gamel seething with anger. He turned around completely to see Sam and Mezool cuddling in the booth behind them. "So Mezool has a new toy, what's the big deal?" he sighed, gathering the cards once more. "Why is she giving her so much attention?" Gamel growled, hitting the bar again. "How about you try NOT hitting the Bar again, before it breaks?" Uva suggested sarcastically.

A noise was heard from the entrance, as the four turned to see the Eel Yummy walk in. "Ah, Lunch is here!" Mezool clapped her hands, and the Yummy collapsed into a huge pile of Cell medals. Uva and Mezool walked over, and began to "eat" the medals. Sam just watched in wonder, as Mezool picked up a handful, and brought them to Sam. "Here, hold these in your hands" she said, placing the medals in her Greeed hands. "Now, absorb them" she explained, and Sam closed her fists around the medals. Her hands began to glow, as Sam felt them enter her body. She felt a strong spike in energy. "Oh, wow" she gasped, looking up at Mezool. She smiled (as much as she could, having no actual 'mouth' and all). Sam ran forward, grabbing more handfuls of Cell Medals, as her power continued to rise. Her legs suddenly began to shimmer, and they also transformed, looking very reptilian.

Sam's cell phone suddenly went off, startling Gamel, who fell completely through the bar.

"Hello?" Sam asked, only to hear the screeching, tone deaf voice of Shelby on the other end, asking where she had been for the past week. "Who is it, sweetie? Mezool asked, as the sound of breaking glass was heard from behind the bar. "It's the ball-and-chain I've been assigned to protect" she answered, closing her phone. "Do you have to leave?" she asked, as Sam got up "Yes, do you?" Gamel asked, finally emerging from behind the Bar. "Yeah, it's important" she said, as Shelby's words rang in his ears; "Sam, where the hell are you? My dad is looking for you!" As Sam walked out, she focused all her might, and suddenly her hands and feet returned to normal. "Now, I can surprise that bastard!" Sam growled, his eyes glowing.

**At Ivan's office**

Sam cautiously edged into the room, trying to be as careful as possible. "Sam, where had you been?" Ivan asked, the tips of his fingers pressed together. "Sorry sir, I just, had some personal things to deal with" Sam lied, carefully sitting down, "I've been worried, no calls, no updates on your condition" Ivan also lied. "Oh, that" Sam grumbled, taking her jacket off, revealing the extent of her mutation, covering both her arms. "Sam, you let it progress this far?" he asked, faking shock.

"Someone told me, that I'm not actually dying" Sam responded, nervously. "Oh, and what did this person, say was happening?" Ivan asked, fidgeting with a Rubik's cube. "They said, I have some Core medals, like the ones OOO uses, inside of me, and that they are turning me into a Greeed" Sam answered, looking up. Ivan's eye just twitched "How could someone know all this? All about my plans?" He thought, running down the list of people who knew about the purple medals in his mind. "Well, I don't know who _this_ person is, but I can assure you, nothing is more accurate than my scientists." He pressed, stressing this point.

Sam looked at him doubtfully, mainly because the medals in her chest were telling her the truth. "Ivan must have medals in him too" Sam thought, looking her oppressor in the eye. Her eyes suddenly glowed, as her power began to rise again. "it, it can't be" Ivan thought, as he backed into the corner. "She truly knows? But how?" he screamed in his head. "And, this, this power! Three medal's couldn't do that on their own!" Sam's body suddenly shimmered again, and a Triceratops face appeared on her chest. It was similar to Ivan's only his was Silver, while Sam's was dark gray, almost black. "Well, if you do know, then maybe, another won't hurt!" Ivan yelled, tossing one of the remaining medals at Sam. She caught it, keeping it from entering her body. "Thanks!" just need one more now!" she yelled, firing a blast of ice from her hands. She froze Ivan's legs, before she jumped out the window, as her legs transformed, absorbing the shock.

"Oh, that ungrateful little bastard will regret _this_" Ivan hissed, grabbing five cell medals, and threw them in the air. Each entered a different object, causing a cloud of smoke to emanate from it. Five Yummy were then standing there. A Triceratops, T-Rex, Pterodactyl, Brachiosaurus, and stegosaurus type Yummies were standing there. "What are you waiting for, get her you idiots!" he commanded, as the Yummy jumped out the window too, hot on Sam's trail,

**Back at School**

Austin was wandering the halls during his lunch break, trying to find Dice. He still had yet to ask about the kiss, and it was getting to the point where Austin could barely contain the facts anymore. He wasn't looking where he was going, and soon ran into someone. "Sorry man" Austin quickly apologized, helping him to his feet. "That is quite all right" the teacher answered, as he collected his papers. "Were you looking for someone?" he asked, pushing his glasses back on his face. "Yeah, my friend, Dice. You would know her as Bethany Waddle" Austin replied, picking a piece of lint off of his shoulder. "Oh, yes, I believe she is busy touring Florida state" he said, looking through a file. "Oh, you're Mr. Pompamoose, the college guy!" Austin said, figuring it out. "So, do you know when he will be back?" "I am sorry, but it is an overnight camp-type thing, so he will not be back till next week I'm afraid" he said, walking off.

"A week?" Austin whined, slumping his shoulders. "He's gonna miss my birthday then" Austin bemoaned, walking back to the cafeteria.

Kitty was walking across the lawn, to get to her next class, when she saw Sam. "Sam?" she asked, before she heard a roar. She then saw the five Yummy after Sam. "Oh. My. God." She gasped, before running back into the building. "AUSTIN!" she screamed as she saw his dirty blond hair go through a door. "What?" he asked, whipping around. "Yummies, Five of them, trouble" she wheezed, catching her breath. Austin quickly nodded in understanding, placing the OOO Driver on his waist as he ran out the front door. He ran across the field, as he saw six monsters in the street, fighting. "Oh, it's on now!" He said, placing three medals in the belt and scanning them. "Henshin!" he cried, "TAKA! KUJAKU! KONDORU! TAAAAAJAAAADORUUUUU!" it sang, as the all red suit formed over him. "TaJa Spinner!" he called, as the weapon attached to his wrist. A volley of fireballs erupted from it. The monsters scattered, as Austin summoned the Kujaku missile feathers. He struck all the monsters, who seemed to just shake the attack off.

Five of them opened their "mouths" and breathed out a strange, black smoke. Austin just hovered there, until he saw the smoke was dissolving everything in its path. "Oh shit!" he cried, flying higher. Just as Austin was wondering how he was going to stop the smoke, a new vapor struck it, and the smoke was frozen solid before it shattered. Austin turned to see the source was the sixth monster. Austin was about to wonder what the heck was going on, when Kitty and Dominic ran up. "Finish them dude!" Dominic cried, as Austin ran the scanner over the medals in compliance. "SCANNING CHARGE!" it sang, as Austin flew higher, before performing a summersault in midair, as his legs seemed to split open into huge talons. He was engulfed in a fire aura, slamming into the Yummy. He managed to destroy three of them, as single cell medals flew out. He turned to the other two, who looked at each other, before they raised their hands, generating bizarre lightning, which struck the medals. The OOO armor shimmered, before it cancelled outright.

Austin looked at his exposed form, as the two Yummy began advancing. Austin began to back away, before he heard an electronic voice "CELL BURST" a giant beam of energy erupted from two Birth Busters, and it destroyed the monsters. "Thanks guys!" Austin called, as Hunter and Goto signaled in recognition. "Dude, ones getting away!" Dominic called, and the three turned to see that the sixth one was lumbering away. "Oh no you don't, Henshin!" Austin yelled, as the scanner called out; "TAKA! UNAGI! CHITA!" Austin took a second to notice the way the new yellow armor looked on his legs, having only seen it before on the other OOO, Scott. He activated the whips, and ran forward, the leg's power activating, granting him super speed. The Yummy suddenly stretched two wings under its arms, and it took flight. "Not on my watch!" he called, sending the whips in the air, catching it. "GAAAAHHHHH" it screamed as blue electricity surged through it and it fell to the ground. Austin caught up as soon as it collapsed, and grabbed it, only to see that, instead of a Yummy head, it was...Sam!

"Sam, what the hell?" Austin asked, horror on his face. The Ex-girlfriend just let out a guttural growl, and a tail emerged from her back. She whipped around, knocking the team down. She stood straight, generated the wings again, and took off.

As they got to their feet, Austin just starred at the sky. "Sam, what's happening to you?" he said, before taking off for home.

**Somewhere else, in King City**

Sam landed in a back alley, miles from the school. As the wings folded back into her body, she took a minute to admire her new self. Her arms and chest were now completely made of armor, as was her legs from the knees down. She ran a hand through her hair, to find boney spikes sticking out of it. She smiled, as she looked over the Ptera Medal in her hands. "So, this is what he's been 'fixing' me with" Sam chuckled to herself, as she was about to open the port on her head, when she heard a terrified shriek. She turned, only to see Shelby there, lying on the ground, trying to crawl away. "I-I don't know who you are, but I have money, just take it, don't hurt me!" she screamed, as Sam walked under a street lamp, and she could see her still-human face

"Oh, my, god, Sam!" she cried, jumping to her feet. "What the hell happened to you?" she asked, staring at her armor. "Ask your dad, he knows _exactly_ what's happening" Sam sneered, before walking off, into the mist. Shelby stared after her, dumbfounded as to why her father, of all people, would know about this

**At Austin's**

Austin returned to his house, once again to find both his parents at work. "Well, I get the house to myself again, which would mean something if I wasn't single!" Austin sighed, slumping into the couch. "Guess I'll do my _homework" _he shuddered, heading for his door. He opened it, and turned on the lights, when he saw something that shouldn't be there. He walked over to the desk, and found a strange package lying in plain view. It was wrapped like a birthday present, and had a note from Dice on it. "Happy Birthday, buddy!" it said. Austin smiled, as he carefully undid the paper. He was holding a plastic, book-like object, which seemed to be decorated like the OOO Driver. He found a hinge on it, and he slid his fingernail into the seam. He popped it open, and smiled at what he saw. There were 24 empty slots in it, each circular, and they all seemed to be a good fit for core medals.

Austin looked at the note, to find more written on the back. "I had this made especially for you, and there's and extra little something in there for you too!" Austin smiled at his friend's thoughtfulness, as he began taking the medals out of his pocket, and placing them in the case. He suddenly wondered what Dice meant by "extra". Austin then saw something interesting. In the last row of holes, he saw that they were filled with three, new Black core medals. "Where did she get these?" he asked, picking them up, studying them with an expression of amazement.

**The Greeed Hideout**

The three Greeed were sitting around, when Sam through the door open. "Hey." Uva called, barely registering her. Mezool quickly got up, and leapt to her side to hold her arm. Gamel just growled. "So, how did it go?" she asked, as she smiled. "I got a souvenir" Sam chuckled, holding up the Ptera Medal. This got Uva's attention. "Then, it is true, just as I figured" she gasped, looking at the purple medal. "Well, I guess now, we just need to decide who gets it!" Uva commented, walking toward the two. "I say, Mezool gets it!" Gamel cried, slapping the floor like the spoiled child he was. "Thank you Gamel, I believe we all know your opinions on who gets medals." Uva sighed, as he swiped the medal from Sam's fingers. "Who said you get it?" she asked, grabbing his shoulder. "Well, I am the leader, so I feel I should get this medal first!" he retorted, shrugging Sam off. "Mezool, Mezool, she gets it!" Gamel cried, jumping to his feet. "Grownups talking here, go play in traffic Gamel" Sam suddenly shot at him. Gamel just sulked. "Anyway, I said that's MINE!" Sam growled, as she punched Uva in the gut, causing him to collapse. "You jackass!" Uva cried, as a strange, cracking sound was heard. "Sorry, I want my medals!" Sam smiled back, as she inserted the Ptera medal into her head. Energy exploded from her, as her lower body transformed as well, leaving her head the last remaining shred of her humanity.

**At Ivan's**

The aid finished placing all the cell medals into a bowl, and set it on a decorative table. "So, what's the plan, boss?" he asked, as Ivan was twirling the Taka medal in his fingers. "We need some more, _reinforcements_" "Oh, so Ankh's going to give us a _hand_?" the aid asked, getting a stare from Ivan. Ivan got up, and looked at the pile of cell medals. "What, he could come in _handy_" the aid said, collapsing in a fit of laughter.

"You know, I have had about enough of you" Ivan hissed, as he struck the aid with his Greeed arm. "But, boss!" the aid, stammered, holding his bleeding arm. "I have no use for you" he said, as the doors opened. Kazari walked in, his old cat like sneer back on his face. "i heard you had a job opening!" he said in a taunting voice, hopping onto the couch. The aid backed away, before running out of the building. Up on the balcony, overlooking the scene, Shelby stood there, her hand covering her gaping mouth, not believing what she had scene.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka, Kujaku, Kondoru

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta

Raion, Tora, Chita

Sai, Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi


	16. The Mysterious Combo

**The Rescue, the Peacock Tiger, and the Mysterious Combo**

**The next afternoon**

Shelby walked through the halls at school, not believing what she had seen. "What is going on with my father?" she thought to herself, remembering the way his arms had changed. She continued thinking this, until a thought hit her. "It looked like what Sam is becoming!" she realized. Wondering how these two events were connected. As she entered the computer lab, she couldn't help but wonder more about this. "Time to see what the internet has to say" she whispered to herself, as she opened the search engine, before realizing she didn't even know what to put. Her mind suddenly flashed to that field trip to her dad's office, and the monsters she had seen there. She quickly found all the videos her classmates had posted on YouTube. As she watched, she studied the videos, trying to hear if their names were mentioned, when she saw something familiar in the corner. It was a girl with red hair, who had yelled in her face at the beginning of the school year. "Time to see if Miss Irish is useful after all" she mumbled, logging off the computer.

**At Lunch**

Kitty was sitting at a table waiting for Austin and Dominic, as she saw a shadow at the other end of the table. "Oh hey I...oh hell" Kitty groaned, looking up to see Shelby standing there. "What do you want now?" "Information" Shelby replied sitting down. "The Earth revolves around the sun, not you, there, there's some information" Kitty replied, not looking up from her sandwich. "No, I meant about the monster attacks" "Kitty quickly glanced around, looking for Austin "And why do you think I would know?" Kitty replied, choosing her words carefully "Because I found this video" Shelby answered, showing the internet video, that revealed Kitty to be at the fight. "Dammit, I thought I was out of sight" she groaned, her cover blown. "So, spill" "Fine, those creatures are called Greeed, they feed on emotions, happy now?" she asked, before a thought entered her head. "Why do you want to know?" "'Cause, I think my father is one of them" Shelby responded, as Kitty's eyes grew wide "WHAT?" she yelled, but Shelby just kept walking.

"So, looks like I got my answer after all" Shelby thought to herself, as her phone buzzed. She looked at the text, to see it was from her dad. "Oh crap" she thought, as she saw the message said "We need to talk"

**At Ivan's office-After School**

"You, wanted to see me, daddy?" Shelby asked, as she opened the door just enough to step into the office. "Ah, yes, Shelby, I wanted a word with you" he said, gesturing to the vacant chair. She cautiously sat down, remembering the previous night, and the conversation she overheard Austin having. "You have enjoyed this life, haven't you?" he asked, pulling something up on the computer. "The money and free reign of the School, sure!" she responded, not sure where this was going. "Well, you seem to be enjoying it, a little too much!" he almost growled, turning his computer screen around to show what appeared to be credit report. "Read the bottom" he commanded, and Shelby squinted her eyes at the last line, a summary of expenses. "Uh, I think it says $12 billion? But there is no way I could have spent that!" she stammered. "Well, this is your account number, and your signature, is it not?" he demanded, gesturing to the information on the screen. "Yeah, it's all correct, but there is no way I would buy; an Island?" she gasped, reading one of the charges. "Well, this says differently, and frankly, I have grown tired of your attitude." He finished, letting that last thought hang over her head. "What are you saying?" she said, her heart starting to race. "What I'm saying is this, you are cut off" "WHAT?" she shrieked, jumping to her feet. "Yep, it's all gone now, no money, no personal staff, and no get out of jail free card. In fact, I think I want you moved out of the mansion by tonight." He finished, staring her down. "What, I huh?" she stuttered, not sure exactly what was going on. "I'm pretty sure I was clear" he said as two guards entered the room. "Please escort my daughter to the door" he said, as the cops picked her up by the arms and dragged her out.

As the door closed, the door to the private-private study opened, and Kazari stumbled out, laughing his ass off, clearly amused at something. "Well, don't you look like the cat who ate the canary, or should I say hawk?" Ivan mussed, as Kazari looked at him with an expression of utmost glee. He just smiled and picked his teeth. "Probably, 'cause I did" he chuckled, as a flame leapt from his hand. "Ah, well, at least we don't have to worry about Ankh now" he said, holding up one of the remaining purple medals. Kazari looked up from the fire to notice the mayor was now wearing a purple blazer. "You know, purple doesn't seem to suit you" he said, as the mayor inserted another medal into himself. "Well, you all seem to like wearing your colors, so I thought I'd get in on it" Ivan replied, as Kazari just chuckled.

**Back at Austin's house.**

Austin was once again lying on his bed, looking at the ceiling. He was thinking about Sam, seeing his former girlfriend as a monster was, just a bit unsettling. "You know, if you're going to doing this much staring, you should put a TV up there" Kitty joked, as she walked into the room. He managed a weak chuckle, as she sat on the edge of his bed. "Is there something you want to talk about?" she asked. "No, it, it's nothing" "Ok, that was the worst lie I've ever heard, second to Dominic's 'a plant stole my homework'" she chuckled, as Austin sighed. "No, it's nothing, leave it alone" he pressured, as Deirdre stood up. "Ok, fine, don't talk about it" Deirdre said, throwing her hands up, and walking out of the room. Scott didn't regret not telling her. He had made a promise to himself not to tell about Dice's kiss, and he had seen enough TV Dramas to know that telling a secret like that ALWAYS spirals out of control. He closed his eyes, as the warm feeling of his lips came back, and his imagination began working as he slipped into a deep sleep.

**Across the city**

Shelby was sitting in a park, watching the people walk by. She was outraged that her father had cut her off! She was looking at her accounts on her phone, all of which said she had no money left. She was already fuming, when her phone went blank, and a message popped up, saying "Your plan has been terminated, have a nice day" She chucked her phone across the lawn, and it landed in the trash can. She lay back on the bench, when she heard an explosion away in the distance. She thought to herself "Where better to get the info I want, then at the scene itself?" She ran towards the source of the explosion, as a mysterious van drove behind her, and a dark figure watched her run.

**Meanwhile**

Austin lay in total darkness, not feeling a thing. He wasn't sure where he was, but it didn't feel right. He opened his eyes to regain his bearings. Cold, still water surrounded him, as a dark figure lay on the ground. Austin had walked over to it, placing a hand on the shoulder. It was cold, like ice from the arctic, and felt like stone. A voice cackled, and he spun around, to see OOO standing there. "What the?" Austin tried to say, but his voice was distant, as if said from a far distance. Austin looked around again, noticing more dark figures, though these were standing. A light suddenly shown and Austin saw the figures were all his friends, but they were lifeless statues. His eyes widened, and OOO suddenly shivered, as spikes, claws and fangs began jutting from him, and its eyes turned purple, as a ghostly fire surrounded him. He now had monstrous horns, fiery lines on his suit, and a skirt-guard thing around his waist. The OOO Scanner voice suddenly rang out "DEATH! DEATH! DEATH!" He turned back to the body, and rolled it over, only to be face to face with...himself, as a stone statue! But a sound started echoing, and a bright light shown, and Austin managed to see a monstrous face staring at him, before he went blind

Austin suddenly woke up, in a cold sweat. He couldn't explain the dream he had just had, but it didn't seem like it should be ignored. He had awoken to the sound of the Gorilla Candroid grunting, meaning a Yummy was on the loose. "Time for me to go to work!" Austin said to himself, grabbing the belt and medal case. As he drove on the road, he shook the dream from his head, as Kitty and Dominic drove up next to him, as they all headed to the plaza. "This sure is a popular target" Kitty said, as they dismounted from their bikes. They looked on at the crowed of fleeing people, as the Yummy emerged in a cloud of smoke. "So, which do you think it is?" Austin asked as he placed the belt on his waist "My money's on Gamel" Dominic added, "I think It's Uva" Kitty offered "I'm going with Kazari" Austin finished. He was about to open the medal case, when a giant fireball shot from the cloud, knocking them to their feet. They looked up to see a Yummy standing there, covered in feathers, with a bird's beak, and clear similarities to a peacock, but it also had a furry gauntlet, and cat ears. "Ok, so we were all wrong, but I was kinda right anyway" Austin said, as they got to their feet. "But, how, 1) Why would Ankh make a Yummy? and 2), I thought he died!" Dominic said, exasperated. "I think Kazari must have grabbed a medal of his" Kitty guessed, as Austin grabbed the case. "Well, it's still an enemy" Austin replied, as he looked at the medals, deciding which to use, when his eyes settled on a set.

"Good time as any to give these a try!" Austin thought to himself, grabbing the Black medals. He placed them in the belt, as they glowed. He ran the scanner over them, as it seemed to shudder, before it cried "SASORI! KANI! EBI! SARIK-K-K-K-K-KANIBI!" The Rings appeared, but this time, they each contained six black rings only, as they docked together. New, black and dark grey armor solidified on Austin. Grey lobster shaped shin guards attached themselves to his legs, a knight like skirt thing appeared on his waist, over his hips. Plain gauntlets were on his forearms, as giant crab claws were settled on his shoulders. Ornamental scorpion stingers attached to his helmet, as the eyes turned white. "Time to rock!"Austin cried, as he ran forward, punching the Yummy. It cawed, before summoning a giant energy peacock tail, just like TaJaDoru. "Oh crap" Austin groaned, as the feather missiles hit him, sending him spiraling into the air. "Ok, now, I'm pissed" Austin growled, as the shoulder armor suddenly rotated, and attached themselves to Austin's forearms, creating giant crab pincers. "Nice!" he smiled, as his legs suddenly glowed, and the air hardened, and he saw a staircase of solidified air leading from him to the Yummy. "Double nice!" he cried, descending the stairs, and grabbed the Yummy. It shrieked, as Austin scissored the feathers off. It hissed like Kazari, as wolverine like claws grew from its hands, and Austin could now see the tiger stripes on its back. "Huh, was wondering when he would use this one" Austin mussed to himself, He looked at the Yummy, as two giant lasers erupted from his helmet, blasting the creature. "This, is gonna be FUN!" Austin yelled, as he once again grabbed the Yummy. "Now, to finish it!" he cried, scanning the medals. As the scanner sang out "SCANNING CHARGE!", he trapped it in solidifying air, as he squeezed it, and blasted it, until the familiar explosion appeared. The Yummy dropped what it had been carrying, and Kitty ran forward, grabbing the bag.

She opened it, and pulled out a magazine. The cover had a scantily clad woman on the cover. "Get Some Magazine?" She gasped, noticing the bag was full of them. Dominic walked up next to her, and grabbed the magazine. "Oh, the new issue's out?" he asked rhetorically, as Kitty made a sound of disgust. "What? I read them for...the...uh...Articles" he replied, as they noticed a figure on the ground. They ran forward, to see a teenage boy lying there. "Gunther?" Dominic asked, as Austin walked over to him. "You know him?" "Yeah, he's our running back, and in your computer class" he said, looking at Kitty. Gunther slowly regained consciousness, as he suddenly opened his eyes wide, before screaming in horror and ran away at top speed. "What was that about?" Austin asked, as they heard footsteps.

They turned around to see Kazari sauntering towards them. His hands were in his pockets. "Kazari, was this your work?" Dominic asked, choking back his fear. "Well, duh!" he replied, throwing his head back in a laugh. "How?" Kitty asked, as Kazari smiled deviously at her. He pointed to his chest and just kept laughing, not able to keep a straight face. "You monster!" she shrieked. "You took one of his medals!" "I still can't believe it!" he laughed "After all these fights, I finally beat him!" he cheered, jumping in joy. The three just growled, as Austin stepped forward. "Oh please, it's pointless, Ankh aint coming back, especially since I got his spirit medal!" Kazari gloated, patting his chest. "Spirit medal?" Kitty asked, as the others looked confused. "Yeah, the core medal that contains the consciousness of a Greeed" Kazari explained. He leapt at the group, pinning Austin to the ground. "And, now that it's in me, he's gone" Kazari sneered, as he ran a finger down Austin's cheek, as the teen shivered in horror. "And now, it's time to get rid of you!" he added, his face inches from Austin's. He reared back his hand, claws out, ready to strike. Austin braced himself for the end, when he heard a sharp metallic sound whistle through the air. "Get away from him!" a familiar voice cried, as Austin opened his eyes to see Dice standing there, holding a shovel, the blade of which was embedded in the Greeed. "Dice..." Austin gasped, as she helped him to his feet. "Happy late Birthday!" Dice said, as they both became aware of the growing heat from their hands. They quickly parted, "We really need to talk later" Austin said, as Dice nodded in agreement.

A blast of fire erupted behind them, as the Peacock Yummy appeared in the plaza. "Oh, right, this guy" Austin said, as he reached for the medals, only to find they were gone. He quickly began looking around, until Dice put a hand on his shoulder. "Looking for these?" she asked, holding up the Medal Case. Austin nodded, as Dice pulled out the blue medals. "Here, go elemental rock-paper-scissors on him!" she suggested, before running to join the others on the sidelines. "I sure well" Austin whispered, running the scanner over the medals. "SHACHI! UNAGI! TAKO! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA!" the scanner sang as the blue armor materialized over him, and he unleashed a sonic blast. "I thought you killed that thing?" Kitty yelled, looking up over their hiding spot. "I think I only got the tiger part, I guess the peacock part is still alive" Austin replied, activating the whips. He spun them around, as the Yummy tried to take flight. Austin grabbed it, and threw it to the ground. It got to its feet, as he scanned the medals. It let out a blast of fire, but Austin jumped up to avoid it, as he descended on the Yummy, drilling straight through it, leaving a pile of cell medals.

"Man, I really hate these things" Kazari suddenly said, snapping the shovel in half as he charged at the group. They all dived out of the way as Austin blocked the swipes. Kazari hissed, as Austin looked down, to see a large crack in Kazari's armor, were the shovel had been. "Wait, could..." he thought, as he jump backwards, just as the pain began setting in. "Dice, quick, I need the Taka medal!" he said, as Dice quickly tossed it to him. "TAKA! UNAGI! TAKO!" the scanner sang as the Taka helmet replaced the Shachi one. "Now then" Austin said, as the eyes glowed, and Austin saw the vision of the visor increasing. He looked through the crack in Kazari's chest, and saw his collection of Medals, and finally, he saw the red one. "There it is! There's Ankh's medal!" he cheered, as Dice suddenly stood up. "I talked to Kougami before I came" she began, running forward. "He said Ankh is still in there, and we might be able to reach him!" Kitty and Dominic ran forward, on the other side of OOO. "Isn't that just slightly clichéd?" Kitty asked, as Dice just shrugged. They all bowed their heads in concentration. Kazari just stared as he reverted to human form.

"Ankh, please, come back!" Austin cried, as Kitty, Dominic and Dice joined in. Kazari just looked around at the four, and laughed. "These people are all idiots!" he thought to himself. "ANKH!" Hunter yelled, joining in. Just as Kazari turned to see the new comer, he gripped his chest, as he seemed to be in pain. He collapsed to the ground, covering his mouth, like he was going to puke. He reared his head back, flailing his arms, as he let out a blood-curdling shriek. He transformed back to his Greeed form, as an explosion came from his chest. All present looked on in a mixture of shock, horror, and joy, as sticking out of a hole in Kazari's chest, was Ankh's right hand! "Man, you will not believe, what I have been through!" he said, floating out of the Greeed. "Ankh!" the others cried, running to pull him into a group hug.

"Excuse me, I'm still here!" Kazari shouted, getting to his feet. "Don't worry, I didn't forget about you!" Austin yelled back. He activated his arm powers, as the whips once again disconnected from his shoulders, settling in his hands. "You want this fast and easy, or slow and painful?" Austin jeered, as Kazari hissed. "Thank you for choosing 'Slow and painful', great choice!" Austin added the witty banter, as he rushed the Greeed. Kazari extended his claws, but a shadow struck him in the back. Kamen Rider Birth was hovering above him, using his wings. "Two on one, that's hardly fair" Kazari chuckled, as he summoned a wave of Pseudo-Yummies. "Now it's fair" he added, before limping away. "What an ass" Austin groaned, as Dice opened the medal case. "Here, use these!" she called, tossing the orange medals to him. "Thanks!" Austin called, as he scanned them. "KOBURA! KAME! WANI!" the scanner sang, as the three orange rings docked together. "BURAKAAAAAWANI!" it continued, as Austin sent the giant cobra at the mooks. "My turn" Hunter said, as he activated his belt. "DRILL ARM" it said, as the drill materialized on his right arm. He flew through the crowd, striking them. Austin spun in the air, striking them with the Wani legs, as Logan flew over, slicing through them as well.

Austin was beginning to feel the pain of the combo setting in, so he quickly scanned the medals again, as Birth activated the Breast Cannon, and they both struck the Yummy with their finishing moves, leaving a pile of broken cell medals behind. Dominic quickly opened Hunter's cell medal carrier, and Ankh leapt in as Austin tossed the three red medals in after him, and a shower of medals escaped from it, reforming Ankh's human form. Once again, they all rushed him into a group hug. "Well, didn't think you guys missed me _that_ much" he grinned. "Of course we did silly!" Kitty replied. "Dude, how did you wake up?" Dominic asked, as they broke apart. "I was drifting through a void, surrounded in total darkness, until I heard my name being shouted, from far away, I knew I had to return, so I did" Ankh replied. "Wow, so I guess our voices did get through!" Kitty cheered, as they all headed off. "No, not all" Ankh thought to himself. "Just one" he thought in a longing voice, looking at Austin.

"So, that's what's going on" Shelby whispered to herself, looking through the leaves of the bush she was hiding behind. She got up to leave, as she saw a ride vendor on the wall, and a few cell medals lying in front of her.

**At Ivan's office**

Kazari stumbled into the room, his hand clenching the hole in his chest, as cell medals rolled onto the floor. "Oh man, those guys are a pain in the ass!" he growled through the pain, as he pulled himself up off the floor and onto the desk. The chair swiveled around, and to his horror, he saw Giru sitting there. "You, you absorbed the last one?" Kazari gulped, as Ivan stood up. His body was now greyish-purple. He had ornamental pterodactyl heads on his shoulders, and a cape flowing from his back. His head was also dark grey now, and shaped like a T-Rex skull. "You failed again" he calmly stated, walking around the desk. "You not only let them get away, you also let Ankh escape" he added. "Sir, I'm sorry, I swear, it won't happen again!" Kazari begged, dropping to his knees. "You're right, it won't" Ivan hissed, quickly spinning around, and struck Kazari square in the chest. He continued to dig his hand into the Greeed, as he located the consciousness medal. "Such a shame, if only you could have removed your emotions" Ivan mussed, as he crushed the medal. Kazari fell down, a look of shock on his face. "Well, I guess purple really does suit you after all" Kazari sneered, before he fell apart, reduced to a pile of cell medals. Ivan bent down, getting ready to pick up the core medals lying in the pile, when a blur suddenly dashed over them. He just looked down, dumbfounded as to where the medals could have gone, until he saw a tiny, robotic bird flying out the window. He looked out of it, to see it deliver Kazari's remaining Core Medals to a figure waiting outside. While Ivan couldn't make out the face of the person, he recognized the $400 boots and $500 gold bracelet on the figure, as Shelbyy walked down the street.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta

Raion, Tora, Chita

Sai, Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi


	17. Disharmony of the Heart

**The Nightmare, The Lies, and The Fallen Queen**

Austin woke up the next morning in a cold sweat again, having just woken up from the same nightmare. "What the hell does that mean?" he asked, looking at himself in the mirror. The mirror image suddenly smiled, before transforming into the demon OOO. "I'm you now" the voice cackled, and Austin suddenly woke up again, this time on a textbook, as the teacher was going over the Civil War. "Thank you Austin for joining us" the teacher sarcastically said, as the other students laughed. Austin blushed as he put his head in his hand. The bell suddenly echoed, and he was the first out the door. He rushed to lunch, taking care not to run over anyone or be run over himself. He searched the quad, until he saw who he was looking for. He walked towards the teen with the even tan, dark brown hair and puka shell necklace.

"Hey, mind if I sit here?" he asked, as Dice looked up. "S-Sure" she answered, as her cheeks became flush. Austin joined her under the tree. "So, do you want to talk about the kiss?" Austin asked, as Dice glanced away, before smiling. "Well, I'm not sure if there's anything to say other than what it means" Dice responded, noticing how close their hands were. "That you like me a lot?" Austin guessed, now aware of the hand situation. "Like? I _love _you!" Dice responded, as she grabbed Austin's hand. Their body temperatures rose at this, and Austin felt his mind getting slightly fuzzy. Dice suddenly leaned Austin back against the tree, inching closer to his face. Their lips connected, and Austin seemed to burn hotter than a super nova. "I love you so much, longer than you've ever known" Dice whispered, as she grabbed Austin's right wrist, and Austin suddenly became ice cold as he jumped up. "Hey, what's wrong?" Dice asked, slightly irritated. Austin didn't answer, he just stammered, holding the bracelet on his wrist, as he quickly ran away. "Thanks for that" she muttered, slumping against the tree.

**In Another part of the School**

Shelby walked through the halls, trying hard to act casual, but she was not doing a good job. Everyone seemed to be avoiding her, not even making eye contact. "What is up with everyone?" she thought, as she made her way to the cheerleading table. As she sat down, the other girls in the squad shifted away and tried to avoid eye contact. "Charlotte, what is up with everyone?" she demanded. The girl continued to ignore her, until Shelbyy grabbed her arm. "What is wrong?" she demanded. The girl groaned before answering. "We all know now, that your father has cut you off" Shelby staggered back, shocked at this. "But, how could you know?" she asked. "He tweeted it." Shelby, taken aback by this news, backed away from the table, and felt someone push past her.

No one had treated her like this before. "Wha-what?" she stammered, as other students began leering at her, some sticking their tongues out, others flipping her the bird. She backed away again, before taking off in a full on run.

**Back with Dice**

Dice was lost in thought, trying to understand what made Austin run of like that. She heard footsteps approaching, and she looked up to see Dominic standing over her. "Oh, hey, what's up?" Dice asked, as Dominic began chuckling under his breath. "What's so funny?" she asked, as Dominic squatted down, his face inches from Dice's. "Why would he date you?" Dominic smirked, as Dice felt the words land like a knife blow. "He's a super hero, you're just a zero" Dominic smirked more, as Dice felt tears running down her face. "But, he, he" Dice stuttered "But he what?" Dominic sneered, inches from Dice. "Austin hates you, he sees you as useless baggage , constantly weighing him down." But, you and Kitty" Dice managed to say, before; "Please, I'm the muscle, and Kitty's the brains. You, you're nothing. We would be better off if you just left" Dominic finished, whispering the words to Dice. Dice just stared, devastated, as Dominic turned away. "Oh, and everyone knows about the kiss" Dominic added, as Dice jumped up, tears forming in her eyes. "That's right, Austin told Kitty, and she spread it around the school, you know how gossip is"

**Meanwhile**

Ankh was filing his claws, sitting in his usual perch, the tree in the quad. He had been watching the rest of the team, when he saw something interesting. On one side of the quad, Dominic was talking to Dice, who seemed to be crying for some reason. Shrugging it off, he looked at the other side of the space, only to see Dominic again, walking out of the lunch line. "What the?" he breathed, turning his attention back to the first Dominic. Dice was gone, but Dominic was still there. He suddenly turned his head and locked eyes with Ankh. Ankh suddenly felt a tremendous sense of dread spread through his body. "My god, what evil is upon us?" Ankh gasped, as the evil Dominic snapped his fingers and vanished in a flash of light

Kitty had been walking to the Library to finish a project, when she saw Scott bounding up one of the stair cases. She followed him, unsure of what was going on, when she noticed the door of the roof was ajar. Kitty pushed open the door to the roof, and stepped out onto the deserted landing. "Austin?" she called, looking around. She continued searching the roof until she saw him, leaning against a shed. "Hey, you took off running, what's up?" she asked, joining him. "Dice told me she loved me" Austin blurted out without thinking. "Oh my gosh, that's so epic!" she cheered, grabbing his hands. "But why are you so sad?" "I don't know, I think, I think it's my memories of Alex" "Who?" Kitty asked. "Alex, my first love" Austin replied, sitting down. "Huh, thought you would have said Sam" she replied. "Please, I'm done with that jerkwad". Austin answered, scoffing at the idea. "So, when were you in love with Alex, and why is it so painful?" "Austin took a breath before answering. "She died" Austin whimpered, as Kitty gasped. "What happened?" "We were at this summer camp, she and i were hiking buddies, one day, we set off for the top of the local mountain" Austin finished, as Kitty just looked confused "And? Then what happened?" she pressed "I can't remember!" he exploded, as she backed up. "Sorry, it's just, one moment she and I were setting off on the hiking trail, and the next thing, I was back at the camp, surrounded by cops and parents, and they were saying she was dead"

"I could see how that could be a traumatic experience" "It's just, he's the only other one who said 'I love you like that" Austin added, but Kitty still didn't understand. "But, why all of a sudden would this come up?" "Tomorrow is her birthday." Austin sighed, and Kitty finally got it. "Ok, so the memory of your first crush is a strong thing, but don't let it keep you from making a new love" she said. Austin just smiled weakly as she patted his shoulder.

She was walking down the stairs when she came face to face with Dice. "Oh, hey" she said, as he looked around cautiously. "What's wrong?" she asked, as he leaned in. "You should see what photo's Dominic has on his phone" she whispered, as she handed her Dominic's green iPhone. "Why would I?" she asked, as Dice just nodded. She opened up his pictures, and gasped at what she saw. "He takes these?" she whispered, "but, that's the girl's locker room!" Dice nodded her face turning into a grin. "Not just the girls" she added, as Kitty found similar pics, only of the football team "And he shares them" Dice grinned devilishly, and Kitty understood. "YOU PERV!" she shrieked, swinging at him, but he ducked and suddenly vanished, as a bright light caught her off guard. "Oh, where did that little weasel go?/!"

Dominic was sitting at the lunch table, enjoying his two favorite things, a meatball sub, and football on his black iPhone. The game was just in its third quarter, and Kitty sat down. "Oh hey" he said, nodding his head in acknowledgement. "Ah, a greasy sandwich and a pointless sport, the two perfect past times of Dumbasses" Kitty smirked, as Dominic suddenly looked up. "What did you?" he began as she cut him off. "You heard me, or is your hearing as bad as your math skills?" she continued. "We all know you're an idiot, Dice especially"

Austin was still sitting on the roof, as he went over the medals he had, taking his mind off the pressing issue at the moment. "Wow," he muttered to himself, "I have about 217 possible forms to use" he thought, as he held the medals up. A red feather dropped in front of him. "Oh, hey Ankh" Austin said without looking up. "Dude, you have to get down there" he urged. "I will go down when I'm ready, or when the bell rings, whichever comes first" he said, as Ankh grabbed him. "NO, I mean, something's wrong with the others" he urged again, Austin jumping up at this. The two ran down the stairs, as Austin heard yelling. As they burst into the quad, they saw the trio at each other's throats. "Perverts!" Kitty was yelling at the two, as Dice and Dominic were taking swings at each other. "What the Hell!" Austin cried out, and the three suddenly turned to him, and began advancing.

"You think I'm a loser?" Dice asked,

"You let them be perverts?" Kitty questioned

"You think I'm an idiot?" Dominic demanded

The three began cornering Austin, when the sound of something slamming into the parking lot broke their concentration. Before they could react, Austin had already slipped passed them and run to investigate the explosion. However, he hadn't shaken the three so easily, as they were hot on his trail. "Ankh, I really need a distraction here!" he called as Ankh flew up next to him. "You got it" he called, as he turned around and shot a fireball. It erupted into a wall of fire, keeping others from following. "Nice!" Austin called as they reached the parking lot. "What IS that?" Ankh asked, as they saw a colossus standing in a crater. It was easily fourteen feet tall, with a body covered in heavy metal armor. It had a Mohawk/ mullet combo that seemed to be made of fire, and a Bird Skull for a head. "That's no Yummy" Ankh gasped, as the creature swung at Austin, barely missing him. "It's time to rock!" he yelled, slotting the medals into the belt. "Henshin!" he cried, as the energy rings appeared once more and the belt cried out "SHACHI! GORIRA! CHITA!" The armor docked together and Austin ran forward, and delivered a powerful uppercut that seemed to dislocate its skull head.

"Yes!" Ankh cheered, but his praise was short lived, as the beast grabbed its head and snapped it back into place. "Oh crap" Austin groaned, as the flames on its head flared.

Shelby was cowering behind the pool, unsure of what to do. "I can't go out there, they'll tear me to shreds!" she sobbed, as tears fell from her face. An explosion shook her, and she looked up to see a monstrosity standing in the parking lot. She stood up, eyes wide in shock. Suddenly, she saw Austin run up to it, and a suit of armor formed over him. "No way" she gasped "Austin is Traffic-Light man?"

Austin spammed the hell out of the Chita legs, using their speed to dodge the beast's attacks. Unfortunately, that's when the beast had decided to detach its arms, and sent them chasing after Austin. "Oh CRAP!" he yelled again, as the hands followed his every move. Suddenly, a wave of water burst from the wall of fire behind him, and it drenched the monster, who shrieked in pain. "That's it! Water to the mane is it's weakness!" he cheered, turning to see who saved him, only to be hit in the face with a blast of water. Sputtering, he saw Kitty standing there, holding one of the emergency fire hoses. "Sorry, I won't miss this time" she sneered, as she turned the hose on again, this time at full force. "That much water will kill him!" Ankh panicked as the torrent rushed towards Austin. Austin braced for the impact, but it never came. He opened his eyes to see that the water had been frozen solid. He quickly turned his head as he heard a fluttering sound. He saw on top of the school, was Sam, in her Greeed form. She took flight again, and sent a flurry of cold wind at the beast, freezing its back. "Austin, here!" Ankh yelled, tossing him the other two blue medals. "Thanks!" he called, replacing the medals. "SHACHI! UNAGI! TAKO!" it called, as the blue armor materialized "SHA-SHA-SHAUTA! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA!" Austin roared as the energy rippled out of his body, and he became his liquid state. He encircled the enemy, just as it broke the ice and the flames were starting to return. He quickly wrapped around it, squeezing it, as the liquid form doused the flames. It shrieked in pain again, as Austin let go, firing a stream of water at the spot on its back, using it to repel down it. He then turned to Ankh, who tossed him his Medajalibur. "Thanks!" he called, as he placed three cell medals in it and scanned them. "TRIPLE SCANNING CHARGE!" the scanner announced, as Austin leapt up again, and planted the sword squarely in the back of its skull. It shrieked one last time, before crumbling into dust.

Austin breathed a sigh of relief, until the chorus of his shouting friends came back to him. "I don't have time for this!" he groaned to himself, as he transformed back into liquid and took off, leaping over the school.

Austin landed in an alley behind the school, as he slumped down behind a dumpster. "You weren't the type to run" a voice called, and Austin whirled around to see Sam standing behind him, almost human, except for her left forearm, which was still that of a Greeed. "What are you doing here?" he demanded, getting ready to fight again. "Hey, relax, I'm not here to fight, not today" she rolled her eyes, as Austin eased up, folding his arms. "Then what are you doing here?" he asked. Sam smiled, as she pulled something from her pocket. "I was just running an errand, and I happened to be in the neighborhood." She replied, as she held up a Ptera medal. "What's that?" Austin asked. "The Ptera Medal, from the missing seventh set" she replied.

"A seventh set?" Austin repeated in the form of a question. "Nope, that's all I'm telling you for now" she shot back, before sprouting wings and taking off again.

Shelby had been watching the entire scene, unsure of why the three had been arguing, as they split up, running off campus. Each had muttered a retort as they left

"I'll show them, I'll show them I can be a hero"

"I'll make them pay for being such perverts"

"They'll regret making fun of me"

"What is going on here?" she asked no one in particular, before noticing the remains of the monster. It had left behind a finely granulated powder. Shelby bent down, examining the powder, and noted a familiar smell. "Pixie Stick sugar?" she wondered aloud, as she tasted it.

**An hour later**

The three set their plans in motion, Dice going to the Luxury hotel, Kitty to a weapon's emporium and Dominic to a construction site.

Dice went straight to the penthouse of the hotel, knocking on the extravagant double door with stain-glass rose patterns. "Oh, hey, you're Dice, right?" Hunter asked upon opening the door. "Yeah" she replied, his voice shaking. "Can I get you something? Jack Daniels, Bud Weis...oh, right, you're a minor, a, soda, juice?" he rambled from the kitchen part of suite. "Actually, I was thinking of the Birth driver" she replied, as Hunter walked back into the room. "Wha...?" he asked, as Dice hurled an Unagi can at him. It connected, shocking him. "Better than a tazer" Dice mused as Hunter fainted.

Kitty walked into the shop, as the clerk appeared from the back. "Hello miss, what can I get for you today?" he asked, as she marveled at the sharp steel in the case. "Something big, and sharp" she replied, as the clerk rushed back into the stockroom. He reappeared in an instant, with a rather large box under his arm. "Is this what you want?" he asked, as Kitty's eyes widened at the sight of the magnificent weapon. "It's perfect, charge it" she answered, handing him her credit card.

Dominic hopped the fence, as he landed in a pile of gravel. "Not my best landing" he muttered, as he began searching around. He scoured the lot, until he found what he was looking for. "Perfect" he grinned, holding the mallet up, before swinging it in a grand arc. "Time to show those two who the idiot really is!" he said as he hopped the fence again.

"They won't call me useless anymore" Dice growled, pulling the Birth Driver out of Hunter's bag.

"This will show those perverts" kitty smirked, holding the Katana up.

"They won't make fun of me after this" Dominic roared, gripping the Hammer.

The three set off, intent on taking each other down. Austin however, lay on his bed, crying into his pillow. He continued sobbing, until his phone buzzed. Lifting his head of the pillow, he read a text. It was from an unknown number, it read "I know the truth, if you want to know too Austin, come to the Museum park". Without hesitating or second thought, Austin was bolting out the door, activating the Ride Vendor. He drove down the freeway, tears still falling from his face. "Kitty, Dominic, Dice, I swear I will make this right!" he cried, as he neared the entrance of the park. He ran to the center of the complex, and stopped in front of a fountain. A noise suddenly caught is attention, and he saw his three former friends had pulled up as well.

"Oh no" Austin breathed, as he jumped behind a tree, as the three walked past, and met on the field across from them. "What..." Austin began, as the three turned to face each other. "Well, if it isn't the Brains and the Brawn!" Dice growled, swinging the Birth Driver around her waist. "And if it isn't the two little perverts!" Kitty shrieked, unsheathing a 4 ft. long Katana. "And the talk behind my back pair!" Dominic hissed, swinging the giant hammer. "Oh god..." Austin whispered, his eyes wide at the horror before him. The three charged at each other as the energy aura surrounded Dice, forming the Birth Armor. The three began clashing, the flash of steel and sparks filled the park, and the clang of metal. Austin winced at each blow, wishing there was something he could do, as a strange mist began to fill the park. "What's this?" Austin asked no one in particular. He waved his hand through, and when he brought it back, it was covered in a white fluid. "Ew" he thought, when he suddenly smelled something sweet. He cautiously tasted the white fluid "Whipped cream?" he said, startled.

A deep, low maniacal laugh whispered through the mist, as Austin saw a snake like being approaching him. "Who-who are you?" he asked. The shape came into view, and Austin saw an abomination. It had the shape of a snake, with the feet of a dragon and a horse, the tail of a fish, the arms of a lion and an eagle (actually a foot) the left wing of a bird, and the right wing of a bat. It had the head of a goat, the right horn of an antelope, the left horn of a ram, a giant fang, and two differently sized eyes. "Gah" Austin recoiled in a mix of fear and disgust. "Oh, my dear boy, why do you back away from this beauty?" it asked, as Austin rolled his eyes. "I, am Discord, the spirit of Chaos" he said, posing as thunder clapped in the background. "What have you done to my friends?" Austin growled, as Discord smiled again. "Ah a smart one aren't you? Well, if you must know, I stole something from them, a piece of their soul if you" he explained, rolling on the bushes. "And the darkness just grew" he finished, as Austin clenched his fist and jaw. "Where are my friends?" he demanded, stepping towards the beast. "Oh, they're a little busy, being turned to stone" he explained, pointing towards the maze entrance. Austin's mind suddenly flashed to his nightmares. "You mean, you sent me those dreams?" Austin asked, falling to his knees. "Well of course I did boy, I do so like riddles and games." Austin just looked at the statue garden, and it seemed to go on infinitely. "My friend's souls are in there somewhere?" he asked, as Discord patted his shoulder. "Why, of course! Now, you better hurry, before they all become stone and you can't help them!" he called, as Austin ran into the maze without a second thought.

"And now, the fun begins" Discord chortled.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta

Raion, Tora, Chita

Sai, Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi


	18. The Past comes to Life

**The Trickster, the Confrontation, and the Gravity Combo**

"Oh the idiot!" Discord laughed, as he wiped a tear from his eye. "I didn't take anything from his friends, that darkness was there all along!" he cheered, performing several laps in the air. "All I did was give them a push in the right direction, and they continued over the edge themselves!"

"Hey, you there!" a voice called, and Discord turned to see Sam, Uva, Mezool and Gamel standing there. "And what is this supposed to be? You guys _saving_OOO?" "Don't make me laugh!" Uva yelled, as Gamel agreed with him. "Once we're done with you, then we take OOO apart." "We're the only ones allowed to defeat him!" Gamel added, slamming his fists together. Uva stepped forward, and assumed his Greeed form. "Let's end this!" he yelled, charging at Discord. "Fool" the beast chuckled, and he slammed his fist into Uva's chest, and a breaking sound was heard. "What did you" Uva stated to ask, before he fell apart into a pile of cell medals. The other three just stared in silence, as one of Uva's medals shattered. "Now, bye!" Discord sneered, as with a snap of his fingers he sent the three flying off ward. "Oh they were such idiots" he smiled, as he pocketed all the medals before him.

Shelby was completely unsure of what was going on. Her entire life had been turned upside-down. "Why does no one respect the Status Quo?" she asked herself, as she pulled out the coins she had stolen from her dad's office. They were different colors with weird pictures of animals on them, one with a Lion, the other a cheetah. She slumped down on a park bench, having been wandering around. The sound of clashing metal snapped her back to reality as voices emanated from the park.

She ran to the source of the noise, and saw the sight before her. Kitty was wielding a giant sword, Dominic had a giant hammer, and there was a third person wearing a suit of armor, which was green and silver. The three were yelling death threats at each other, until Ashley couldn't stand it anymore. She ran forward, amidst the former friends

"STOP IT YOU THREE!" Shelby suddenly yelled, throwing her arms up to separate the warring parties

"Shelby?" they each asked, as the armor person suddenly shimmered, leaving Dice standing there. "What the hell do you three think you're doing?" she asked, as they each yelled. "Killing this SOB" Shelby just stared, not believing it. "Why...?" "This _pervert!_ He takes pictures of the various teams CHANGING!" Kitty screamed, as Dice came to tears and Dominic just looked like he had been punched in the gut. "What are you talking about?" he asked, as Kitty stared back. "Oh like you don't know"

"No, I really don't" he replied, and Kitty's expression changed instantly.

"Wait, so you didn't take those pictures with your phone?" Kitty asked, as Dominic looked at her gob smacked. "Hell NO!" he yelled, holding up his phone. "Wait, your phone is black?" she asked, as he nodded. "The phone Dice showed me was green!" she said turning to her. "Me? I did no such thing, I was in tears cause Dominic said you told the entire school about me kissing Austin!" he said, as they both looked dumbfounded at him. "I would never!" Dominic yelled, as Kitty explained how a) she didn't know enough people to make that happen and b) she wasn't a heartless snake. "Yeah, but you guys do think I'm a dumbass" Dominic grumbled, as they turned around to face him. "Well, we know you aren't _exactly_ the sharpest tool in the shed" Dice said, looking to the side. "But we don't care about that at all" Kitty finished. "So, wait, those were just lies?" Dice asked, as they all nodded in agreement. "I guess we shouldn't have gone off the handle like this" she said, chucking the Katana away. "Yeah" Dominic agreed, tossing the Hammer to the ground. "Ditto" Dice sighed, unclipping the belt. "Friends?" she asked sheepishly, "Friends" the others agreed pulling him into a hug.

"Ugh, gag me with a spoon!" a gruff voice called, and they turned to Shelby. "Shelby, I know your evil" Kitty began before she threw her hands up. "Hey, I'm all for friendship too, and that was not my voice" she protested, as a flash of light cut through the clearing, leaving the abomination floating there. "Man, I thought I left this friendship crap back in that other dimension" it said, circling them. "What's going on here?" Shelby asked, still new to all these crazy shenanigans. "I was playing a game with you three" he replied, as they stared at him in disbelief. "What?" Kitty blurted out. "Oh yes, it's called 'Make Austin's friends kill themselves while I take him out'" he said matter-of-factly

"Austin? Wait, what have you done with him?" Dice asked, stepping towards the intruder. "Oh, he's right here!" the beast replied, drinking the fog up, revealing the stone garden maze Austin had dashed into was little more than a clearing with four statues on the sides. However, an extra statue was there, fallen on the ground. Dice ran forward, as she saw the lifeless form on the ground. "Austin?" she called, and no answer came. She rolled the statue over, to see her crush lying, still as a statue. Suddenly, Dice heard a demonic laugh over the thunder "Oh, the poor boy" the beast called.

"What have you done to him!" Dice yelled, as the creature just looked over his nails, before vanishing in a *poof* "It's just, he is so annoying and powerful, I decided to bring him down a few pegs!" it chuckled, as it snaked its way around Dice "And you can't get lower than being still as a vegetable, that's for sure". "What are you?" Dice asked, as it came to a stop in front of her face, its horrid, mismatched face and eyes staring at her. "Why, my dear boy, I am Discord, the spirit of Chaos!" he shouted as lightning danced in the sky behind him and cars started flying by (with actual wings). "Where the fuck did you come from?" Kitty asked as he turned to face her. "Well, it was a lovely little dimension, so full of hope, magic and friendship, it made me barf" he replied, sticking his tongue out. "I must say, I do so like this world much better, all unsuspecting citizens to toy with, no magic, and especially no stupid ponies to ruin my plans again!" he growled, as the others raised their eyebrows "Ponies?" Dominic asked "Look, never mind" Discord replied "The point is, your friend is now trapped in his own little nightmare world, and he's not coming back."

"You WILL pay Discord!" Dice growled, as she charged at the beast, swinging the Belt around herself. Suddenly, Dice tripped, landing in a pile of cotton candy. "Oh please, like you can stand up to the embodiment of Chaos" he grinned

**Meanwhile, inside Austin's mind**

Austin stood on a field, as he recognized his younger self, playing in the flowers. "I remember this" he thought, as he saw a young girl run towards him. She tackled the young Austin to the ground. The two proceeded to roll in the flowers, until Austin kissed her. "And I remember that as well" he thought, remembering how happy the two were. "I got you something" the young Scott said, as he reached into his pocket, and pulled out two leather bracelets. "Wow" the girl said. "They represent our love or something" she blushed, as she slipped in onto her wrist. "And you got it in white, my favorite color!" the girl said, as present day Scott looked down at his wrist, to see the very same white bracelet resting over his own rainbow version.

"It's so beautiful, but it doesn't last" Austin thought to himself.

**Outside**

The others formed a wall between Austin and Shelby, and she fell to her knees. "I have to help him somehow" Shelby whispered, as her vision got foggy, and she passed out.

**Back in the Dreamscape**

She woke up in a dense forest, snaking with fog. "Where is this?" she thought, as she heard laughter. A young boy, no more than eleven rushed past her, a girl right on his heels. "Austin? ALEX?" she gasped, as they vanished into the fog. Soon, she found another figure, sitting on a rock, his head in his hands. "Austin? Again?" she asked, as he lifted his head. "Great, as if this couldn't get any worse, you're in here too." He sobbed as she looked around. "Where is this?" she asked, as he stood up. "I think inside my memories, that bastard Discord tricked me into going into this weird fog." He explained "Yeah, we've met" she said, as the laughter was heard again. "Why are you remembering this?" she asked "Because, it haunts me every time I close my eyes" Austin replied, as Shelby turned to face him, her eyes wide with shock.

**Outside**

Dice charged at the beast, fury in her eyes. "HENSHIN!" she cried, sliding another cell medal into the belt, and the aura sphere surrounded him, and she was wearing the Birth Armor again. The Beast just side-stepped, and did the same to Kitty and Dominic. "Please, I am a GOD" he proclaimed, as thunder struck in the background. A ball of fire suddenly flew at Discord, who turned it into a snowball. "Ok, who threw that?" he asked, as Ankh touched down next to the others. He smiled at them, before getting a puzzled look and looked down at Shelby and Austin. "Why is Shelby unconscious too?" Dominic asked, as they looked over.

**With Austin and Shelby**

"What do you mean?" she asked him, as Austin walked forward, and the scene suddenly shifted to a cliff. "This is where it happened" he solemnly answered, and Shelby spun around to see young Austin and Alex walking into view, holding hands. "Oh my god" she replied, a hand over her mouth.

"_This__is__so__cool!"__Young__Austin__proclaimed,__as__the__two__sat__down,__close__to__the__edge of__the__cliff,__watching__the__sun set._ "No..." Austin whispered, tears forming in his eyes. _The__two__moved__closer,__and__Alex__put__her__arm__around__Scott.__The__two__pulled__closer,__until__they__werekissing._"Wow" Shelby flatly replied, looking at Austin._The__two__broke__apart,__and__they__smiled__at__eachother.__"I__love__you"__Scott__whispered,__as__Alex__smiled__back.__"I__love__you__too,__'till__the__day__we__die__and__beyond."_Austin suddenly doubled over, falling to his knees, tears pouring from his face. Shelby just looked confused, until a rumbling began. _The__two__suddenly__looked__around,__as__the__rumbling__increased.__Soon,__the__ground__began__to__split,__and__the__cliff__fell__apart.__The__two__fell._Shelby gasped, as she ran forward, shock on her face. She looked over the edge, to see Austin holding onto a tree root, and Alex holding onto his free hand. _"What__do__we__do?"__Young__Austin__cried,__as__Alex__looked__around.__"You__have__to__let__go"__Alex__replied;__her__voice__eerily__calm_ "_What?__NO!"__Young__Austin__yelled__back,__as__the__quakescameback,__and__the__root__began__to__slip.__"It__won't__hold__us__both."__Alex__explained.__"I__won't__leave__you!__I__love__you!"__Young__Austin__called__back.__"You__have__to__make__the__choice,__you__can__still__live"__Young__Austin__just__shook__his__head.__"I__don't__want__to__make__that__choice" "Then__I__won't__makeyou__choose"__Alex__replied,__letting__go__of__Austin's__hand._ Austin rushed forward, trying to grab Alex, but it was too late, as he had disappeared. Shelby just stood there, her mouth wide open, tears streaming down her face. Faint voices came to her attention, as she turned to see camp councilors running up to the peak. She turned back, to see Young Austin having climbed back up.

He has sitting on his legs, his arms flopped hopelessly to his sides, his face stained with tears. He was clutching Alex's bracelet. He wasn't moving, even as the camp staff reached him. The scene suddenly shifted again, to a hospital. Shelby turned to Austin, tears in her eyes. "You really did try to save her" she sobbed, as he gave a faint nod. She put her arms around him, giving him a hug. "W-What are you doing?" he asked. "Thank you" she replied, as Austin just looked away. "I never knew, I just thought you did nothing, and let it happen, I had no idea." "Well, I didn't exactly remember all of it, I guess I repressed a lot of it." Austin shrugged, as she continued to hug him.

"What a touching scene" a gruff voice said behind them, as they whipped around. Standing behind them was OOO. He just walked toward them, sauntering with each step. As he walked, the floor seemed to become lava, as the lines on him changed color, and his armor hazed until it turned demonic. "Not Demon OOO, not again" Austin whined, backing away. "Ok, I'm confused, how does this relate to your memory?" she asked, "It doesn't, I don't know where he came from." Austin whimpered, backing away. "Oh, right" Shelby suddenly remembered. "We need you Austin, that creepy guy, Discord, he's kicking everyone's ass!" She called to him. "So what, I couldn't protect Alex then, why should I be able to protect anyone now?" Austin asked sheepishly. "Oh get over it!" She cried. "Ok, you're sad about Alex, your girlfriend, my sister, but she wouldn't want you to give up like this!" He still didn't reply. "Dice needs you!" she called out, and his breath hitched. "She does love you! Discord was playing with her, but she really does love you, and she needs you, right now!" She screamed. Austin suddenly looked up, as the Evil-OOO had snuck up behind Shelby, and grabbed her. "You're not who I'm after, but you'll do in the meantime" he cackled, lifting her up by the scruff of the neck. "Help me Austin!" she yelled, but he just stood there. "Help me Kamen Rider OOO!" she called, as she noticed his fist clinch. "Help me you piece of trash!" she yelled, and a bright light flashed next to her, as Scott had rushed forward, and punched the attacker in the face. He stumbled away, clutching his face. Shelby looked on, as Austin held out his hand. "I'm not trash" he replied, a smile on his face. She smiled back, as they turned to look at the evil OOO

Cracks appeared on his helmet, as a light began to glow behind them. There was a pinprick of light in the distance, and they turned to look at each other. "Let's rock" Shelby said, as Austin smiled. The two ran at the light, and the landscape seemed to dissolve around them.

Shelby slowly opened her eyes, as she regained consciousness. The sounds of the battle came back to her as she sat up, in time to dodge a piece of rock sent flying toward her. "Nice of you to wake up, princess!" Kitty called, as Shelby looked around, to see Austin. She ran over to him, and placed a hand on his wrist. He was warm again, and a smile appeared on his face. "Let me catch my breath" he whispered, as she nodded, and turned back to the two monsters

"Well, looks like your back from the dream world" Discord noticed with a half-air of caring. "Yeah, and I'm ready to take you apart" she shot back, and he just chuckled. "I'm glad you're feeling confident about escaping my dream mist, but this is the real world, no super dream reality warping power here, well, except mine" he added, smiling to himself. The five just walked forward, growling. "Oh, what now"" he asked, clearly bored. "You know, we REALLY hate you" Ankh hissed. "Austin can't say it now, but were gonna say it for him" they called, as Kitty stepped forward. "You play with people's minds, forcing them to relive their worst nightmares and trick them into spiraling into darkness"

"You sent him those dreams to play with his mid, the ones of us all being statues, and of the Demon OOO's!" Shelby yelled back, as Discord suddenly got a puzzled look.

"Demon OOO? Now you are the crazy one." Discord snarked "Anyway, I _must_ be off, I'll leave you with this to deal with, Sayonara!" he called, poofing again. Suddenly, a giant monster made of rock descended from the sky, leaving a crater in the parking lot. "Uh, Austin?" Shelby said, turning to see him still frozen as a statue. "Austin!" the others yelled, as the monster began lumbering towards them. "It's no use, he's too exhausted" Shelby said, before noticing the bracelet on his arm. "Well, I'm not" Dice said, as she slotted two more cell medals into the belt, and it called "SHOVEL ARM, DRILL ARM" She charged at it, striking it. However, the monster didn't seem to be phased at all! It raised its arm, and struck Dice, sending her flying back into a building. "Oh, it's on now!" Ankh yelled, assuming his Greeed form. He flew into the monster's face, launching a missile spam attack. The golem just swatted him away like a fly. "Man, we are so boned!" Kitty groaned as they were backed into a corner. "CELL BURST" the Birth Driver sang, as a stream of energy exploded from the Breast Cannon. The monster however, just placed its hand up to block the attack, before smashing Dice into the ground, trapping her under the pavement. It reared its whole body back, ready to crush Dice, when an unexpected sound filled the parking lot.

"SAI! GORIRA! ZOU! sagozo...SAGOZO!" The scanner suddenly sang behind them, as Austin stood there, and the grey rings locked together, generating the silver armor over him. "Austin..." Kitty whispered, as he stomped toward the golem. "No one. Hurts. My. DICE!" Austin screamed, delivering a devastating uppercut to the rock monster. The others just stared with wide eyes and open mouths, as Austin delivered a series of gravity boosted punches and kicks. He continued chipping the rock away, until enough rock crumbled away to reveal a giant diamond in the center. Suddenly, the pieces of the rock monster grouped together, forming smaller versions of the monster. "Oh shit!" Austin cried, as the summons swarmed him. "Gah!" Austin cried, as the monster began to crush him. "Crap! We have to help him!" Dominic yelled, but the giant monster stepped in his and Kitty's paths. They looked on helplessly, as Austin was being crushed.

Suddenly, a strange wind blew through the lot. It froze all the monsters, and Austin could hear the ice cracking the monsters. "HI-YAAAAA!" Austin cried, as he spun around, shattering the rocks. He looked around to see his savior, and saw Sam on a lamppost. She nodded, before flying off. "She just has to ruin this" Dice groaned, as she pulled himself out of the ground. Austin leapt out of the rubble, and activated the Sai helmet, head-butting the monster, right in the diamond. As the jewel began to crack, the rock started to split apart, and Austin scanned the medals. As the scanner said its phrase, Scott leapt into the air, before crashing back to earth, ripping the pavement up. It encircled the monster, and trapped it in the ground. The OOO Symbol began glowing, and the monster was pulled through the ground towards OOO, and he reared his head and fists back, and delivered a two-punch/ head butt combo to the diamond, and the monster dissolved into dust.

Austin turned back to the group, and turned back to normal. They all rushed forward, pulling him into a hug. He smiled as he saw Dice. "But, I thought you said..." Austin put his finger's to her lips "While I don't know what this is going to be, I know I care for you, a lot." He reassured his friend, and the two embraced.

He turned to Shelby, who was avoiding his sight. "Shel" he began, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry for everything" he said, as the armor dissolved. "I-I never knew" she said in a whisper, turning to face him. "You did try to save her" she said, tears in her eyes. "I guess I had forgotten it too, but yeah, I didn't want to let go of her hand" Austin reassured her, as they both broke into a smile. "I'm sorry too" she said, "I'm sorry for treating you like trash all these years" Austin smiled, as he grabbed his right wrist, drawing her attention to it. "That, that bracelet" Shelby began, as Austin removed it. "Yeah, it belonged to her" Austin explained, holding it out. "He and I each got one to symbolize our love for each other, and now, I want them to symbolize our friendship" Austin explained, as tears filled Shelby's eyes. She threw herself onto him, drawing him into a hug. The others joined in, and Kitty grabbed Ankh, pulling him into the hug as well.

As they broke apart, Austin shook Shelby's hand "Welcome to team OOO" he said, as she smiled. The others all smiled too, until "But, what about Sam?" Kitty suddenly asked, drawing the others back to that part of the fight. "We need to cure her" Dominic said after a few moments, and the others nodded.

**The Greeed Hideout**

Sam took the last Ptera medal in her hand, before adding it to herself. "If we have a bigger enemy than Ivan, I need more power" she thought to herself, as Mezool sat and watched

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta

Raion, Tora, Chita

Sai, Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi


	19. The Greeedification of Samantha

**The Girlfriend Rescue, The Showdown, and the Scorching Combo**

After the confrontation with Discord, most of the team was relaxing, happy that they had won. However, Austin was not so happy. His thoughts had been plagued with worries about Sam. He was more determined than ever to save his ex from this fate. One night while staring at the ceiling before falling asleep, he promised himself "I will save Sam before the New Year" before he fell asleep. Austin spent most of the week with only Ankh as constant company. Austin's parents each had business trips that would keep them away till the New Year.

"I can't believe they give you that much freedom" Ankh observed one night, while munching on a popsicle. This was nothing new to Austin, his parents were very busy and the rest of his family all lived out of state, so he often was on his own. It helped the team out greatly, as they used his house as a meeting place to figure out how to save Sam. "How are we going to take out all the other Greeed, you can barely handle one on your own" Dominic moaned, as he and Austin were trying to come up with a battle plan.

Shelby had told them about what she had seen, after she handed the two medals over to Ankh. "So, the mayor is the guy who had the orange medals flown in" Kitty sighed, sitting down on the couch. "Yeah, and he has Greeed powers too" Shelby added. "So that's where the other half of Giru's medals are" Ankh mused, as Austin turned to look at him. "Giru?" "The sixth Greeed" Ankh explained, "Real piece of work, he's the reason we're incomplete" Ankh explained, rubbing his wrist.

"We need to try to grab when he's alone, but we still don't know where he is" Austin moaned, having checked out Sam's house, it looked like no one had been there in months. "What about Candroids?" Shelby asked, but Austin waved his hand "I already sent swarms of them out weeks ago, none have come back. Their discussions were once again interrupted by Dice, who chose that moment to slump through the door. She promptly passed out, with hardly a word from anyone.

Dice was having her own troubles, as Hunter was none too happy about being swindled. To make up for it, Dice had to be his personal assistant, and Hunter was putting him through the ringer. She was lying on the couch, completely exhausted. "We hit every store in the mall" Dice complained as Shelby tossed her an icepack. "Ow" she complained, as the icepack hit her in the gut. "Then, he used me for training" she added, as Shelby ignored him, and all the others seemed too preoccupied with Sam.

They decided to see this plan through to the end, and devote all their time to it. Fortunately, it was Thanksgiving, and they had the entire week off. "Do you think one week will be enough time to find, grab AND cure him?" Kitty asked Austin, who just shrugged. Shelby sat on the sidelines for most of these meetings, feeling slightly out of place. She watched the others going over ideas about grabbing Sam and using various hardware store implements and giant magnets to remove the medals. Each of these ideas were met with a skeptical scoff from Ankh. After five hours and the only thing they could agree upon was what pizza to order, Shelby had had enough. "If no one is going to say it, then I will" she thought

"Ok, even _if_ we manage to get him, how _are_ we going to cure him?" Shelby asked at long last, as the others turned to look at her. "Think about it, we have no idea what is really going on, so it will be impossible to come up with a plan now" "Shelby, I hate to say this, is right, we need to know more about Giru and the purple medals" Kitty agreed, looking at Austin. Austin thought for a second, before coming to a realization. "I think I know who can tell us" Austin thought, glancing at the Kougami Industries building

**In Kougami's office, ten minutes later**

"Ah, I was wondering when you were going to be here!" Kougami exclaimed, walking from behind his desk. "I have been watching the news reports and your fights through the Ride Vendors, you're doing very well" He said, congratulating Austin. Austin nodded in thanks, but Kougami seemed puzzled. "Is there something troubling you?" he asked, as Austin looked to the left, slightly embarrassed, before he responded. "Well, there was something I wanted to know" Austin asked, changing the subject. "You want to know about Giru, do you?" Kougami asked, sitting down at his piano. "How did you?" Austin asked after a few moments, stunned. "I told you, I have been watching everything, I know all about the purple medals and Sam's Greeedification"

"Yes sir, I need to know what's happening to Sam" Austin pleaded. "Very well, I will now tell you the story of the medals, as I believe you are now ready to know it" He said, as he started playing a melody that seemed to mentally send Austin back to the medieval times. "Back in the ancient times, there existed a king. Now, this king had desires more powerful than the normal mortal, for he desired GODHOOD!" he said, striking a flourish on the keys. "To achieve this, he instructed his most trusted alchemists at the time to create the power he so desired. They used gemstones and the natural life energies of living beings, to craft 70 medals" "70?" Austin asked, interrupting him. "I've only counted about 54" he said, folding his arms. "I thought you wanted to hear the story?" Kougami asked. "Yes, sorry, continue" "Very well. The 70 medals reacted with the stockpile of silver the alchemists had collected, creating the cell medals. The core medals began surrounding themselves with cells, and they formed bodies. This is how the main Greeed were created."

"The Greeed were unfortunately, little more than artificial bodies, not capable of feelings. However, the sixth Greeed to be created, Giru, noticed that while all the animals that made up his brethren were alive, the creatures that made _him _up were extinct. His element, ice, also was the opposite of all the other's elements. Each of the other five had elements that were positive; Fire, Lightning, Wind and Light, Earth, and Water, all elements good in nature, not like his cold element. This created a desire in his heart, one of jealousy. He decided that if he couldn't feel the connection to nature the others could feel, than they should pay." Kougami continued, his song taking an aggressive tone. "He first attacked the alchemists creating the seventh Greeed, destroying all but a single set of his (or her) medals. He then attacked his brothers, and destroyed the tenth medal from each of their sets, creating a hole in their hearts. The king wouldn't stand for this, and personally defeated the Greeed, by stealing all of his medals. He ordered the purple medals to be sealed away, and the orange medals to be sent to a tribe in the rainforest, in hopes the orange medal's power could be restored. However, the damage was done, and the Greeed began to develop minds of their own, as the loss was too great."

"King was forced to use a special set of medals to fight the Greeed, and was assisted by Ankh, as you were" Kougami explained further, glancing at Austin. "They succeeded in defeating the Greeed, but he double-crossed Ankh, stealing his cores as well as the others. Before he could be stopped, King attempted to scan all the medals he had, in hopes of achieving Godhood. However, because his Desire was too strong and so immense, the power corrupted him and overflowed. This caused his body to turn to stone, and sucked all the Greeed in, sealing them in a coffin, where they remained till _you_ unsealed them in this time" Kougami finished, striking all the keys at once.

"So the Greeed are just trying to fill a void?" Austin asked, feeling a great weight drop in his heart. He suddenly began feeling bad about what he had been doing. Kougami nodded, as he got up and went to his Bar on the other side of the office. "These guys just want to feel complete" Austin thought, as Kougami picked up on his worries. "Yes, but I believe you need to know how to save Sam?" Kougami asked, pouring a glass of wine. "Oh, right" Austin shook his head, returning to matters at hand. "The purple medals are the antithesis of desire. Unlike the Greeed, who feed on it and make it grow, the purple medals destroy it. Meaning, it fills a person with a desire for nothing" he said, as Austin's eyes widened. "So, since these medals are _in_Sam, and she has basically no desires for herself..." Austin began, as Kougami poured a refill "The power will continue to fill and corrupt her, until" Kougami let that last thought hang, as he continued to pour wine, until the glass overflowed, spilling wine. "It takes her over" Kougami finished, sweeping the overfilled glass off the bar, and it smashed against the wall.

"What do I have to do?" Austin asked, gulping. "The purple medals _can_ be countered by an equally powerful desire. If Sam can develop a powerful desire, she can reverse the process of Greeedification. Once the desire fills her up, the purple medals will be unable to function properly, and vanish from existence" Kougami explained, and Austin bowed, running out to find his friend.

"So, I know how to cure her now" Austin thought as he pressed the button for the elevator outside. "Now I just need to grab her" He rushed into the elevator, not noticing the one next to it opening, and Dice stepping out of it with Erika. The two walked into the office, as she noticed the spilled wine

"Again with the wine demonstration?" Erika asked, walking over to the floor to pick up the shattered glass. "Interestingly enough, the same reason the purple medals corrupt Sam, is the same reason Austin can use the OOO power." He mused, as Erika surmised what had happened. "They are both empty glasses" Erika concluded, sitting back on the couch. "Yes, and while Sam is being filled to the brim, Austin seems to be able to hold an infinite amount, taking in all desires around him." "Does this mean he can achieve _that_ power?" She asked, reading her magazine. "Perhaps, or, perhaps he will continue to surprise us" Kougami mused, resting his hands on the bar.

"Uh, you wanted to see me sir?" Dice asked, feeling out of place. "Ah, yes, Ms. Waddle" He said, walking over to her. "I was very pleased to see you aptitude for using the Birth Gear in your last fight" he said, taking Dice by surprise. Dice had thought Kougami would be furious with her. "That is why, I have a special assignment for you" he said, pulling a suitcase out from under the bar. He opened it, and Dice's eyes went wide with surprise.

**Fifteen minutes later**

With the knowledge of how to cure Sam, the group decided it would be easier to grab Sam from the streets rather than risk breaking into town hall, since none of them actually felt sure about their chances against armed guards. Even Austin admitted that their plan would have failed. So they chose this alternate.

Austin quietly rolled along, as he was about two blocks behind Sam. He had been following her for a few minutes, and Austin already noted they were close to City Hall. "Ok guys" Austin said over his blue tooth. "This is it" He crept the bike along, as Sam neared the intersection that would take her to the battle ground. "Ok, on my mark, wait, wait, what?" Austin had broken off from his command, as Sam went down the exact OPPOSITE Street. "Hold it guys, he's not going to city hall." The others were all confused, what was going on? "Don't worry, I'm still following him" Austin assured them, as he went down the same street. He soon found himself in a bad part of town, the buildings falling apart, debris lining the streets. "What's going on?" Austin asked himself, as he watched Sam continue walking down the street, and he soon followed.

**Dice's POV**

Dice was riding on her own ride vendor, carefully staying a few yards behind Austin. "I won't let him make a mistake he'll regret" Dice told herself, as she continued following him.

**Austin's POV**

Sam finally arrived at her destination, and Austin just looked in confusion, it was an abandoned bar, "It's probably been closed down for a few years" Austin thought, as he parked the Ride Vendor and walked toward the establishment. "Why is she here?" He thought to himself "This isn't the mayor's office" He was grateful that the bar had an awning, as rain began to fall from the sky. "Ok, that seems a tad ominous" Austin said to himself, noting the mood in the air. He pushed open the door, surprised to find it open. He crept inside, keeping the noises he made to a minimum, trying to sneak up on the Greeed. As he rounded a corner, he saw a light on in the main room. He looked past the wall, to see a shabbily furnished room, with tables, chairs and random garbage lying around, and the bar still fully stocked. However, he saw a sight in the center of the room that truly pushed him over the edge.

"Sam...?" He cried out loud, as he had walked in on Sam and Mezool. The two had been making out, and what made it even more disturbing, was that Mezool was in her full Greeed form, and Sam was in half-Greeed form. "Oh shit" Sam said, looking up to see Austin standing there. "OOO-boy, this, this isn't what it looks like" Mezool started, getting up off the floor. "You _stole_ her from me!" Austin hissed

"Oh, you are _so_going to pay" Austin growled, opening the medal case. He slotted Kazari's medals into the belt, and scanned them. "RAION! TORA! CHITA! RATAH! RATAH! RATORATAH!" the scanner sang, as the yellow medals docked together, working this time. Austin screamed, as a blast of light AND heat burst from the Raion head. Mezool shrieked in pain, as the heat seared her. Austin walked forward, continuing the barrage. "This is the pain that burns in my veins, feel it!" he snarled, grabbing her off the ground. "I-I'm sorry!" she gasped, the heat getting to her. "Oh, you will be" Austin taunted, activating the Tora Claws. A heavy weight slammed into Austin, who skidded away. "You leave Mezool alone!" Gamel threatened, elongating his trunk, slamming it towards Austin. "Gamel" Mezool said, regaining her composure. "I want you to be happy Mezool, even if it has to be with the human" he said, nodding. "Well, that's too bad!" Austin said, plowing his claws towards Gamel. "She stole her from me!" Austin yelled, charging the claws with light and heat, making it impossible for Gamel to dodge them. The distraction was enough, as Mezool crushed a handful of cell medals, creating an army of pseudo Yummies.

**Meanwhile**

Sam had managed to stagger out of the bar, thoroughly confused. "Has Austin lost it?" she asked no one, as a brick flew by, narrowly missing her ear. "What the hell?" she asked, whirling around, to see Dice standing there. "Oh, you're that kid that always fights with a shovel" she noticed, as Dice clipped the Birth Driver around her waist. "Now what are _you _doing?" she asked, as Dice slipped a cell medal into the belt "Henshin!" she cried, and the aura sphere surrounded her, generating the Birth Armor, but this armor was different, it had re circles and stripes all over it. "You like it? It's the prototype Birth" she said, as she and Sam circled each other. "May not be as powerful, but I'm pretty damn sure it will take you down." Dice sneered. "We'll see" Sam sneered back, as she became her Greeed form. Dice slotted a cell medal into the belt, as the crane arm was generated. "You made Austin cry, and you will pay for that" Dice said, anger in her voice. The two charged at each other, screaming at the top of their lungs.

**Back with Austin**

"Oh, this, this will be _fun_" Austin sneered, activating the Chita Legs. He zipped through the crowd of Yummies, slicing at them. A few dropped, and the remaining ones merged together growing bigger. "Oh, no you don't!" Austin hissed, running the Scanner over the medals. "SCANNING CHARGE!" it cried, as three yellow rings appeared before Austin. He charged through them, extending the claws, gaining speed, and blinding the Yummy mass. He ran through the final ring, and sliced, leaving a shining "X" mark. The Yummy mass fell apart, before exploding. "And now, it's your turn!" Austin cried, charging again. As he swung at Mezool, she could hear him panting, starting to feel the effects of the combo. "Well, looks like you'll be down for the count soon enough!" she quipped. "Actually, I felt that a few minutes ago" Austin sneered, a devious smirk spread on his face. "But I am so pissed off right now, the pain went away!" he yelled, as a cyclone erupted from the claws, turning Austin into a tornado of heat, light, and flashing blades.

Gamel tried to jump in the way, but he was instantly knocked away, slamming his head into the wall of the bar, knocked out cold. The tornado advanced, before it picked Mezool up too. Austin then leapt in the cyclone, and they crashed through the wall, landing outside.

Kitty and Dominic, having not heard anything from Austin, arrived at the location thanks to a Taka Candroid, to hear explosions from the bar. As they were dismounting, two more ride vendors pulled up, and Hunter and Gotou dismounted. "Hey, Kougami said you guys might need some back-up" Gotou offered, as the roof broke off the bar. A giant yellow cyclone rose out of it, as the four watched. "I think Austin found them" Hunter said, as the cyclone landed in the middle of the plaza. Austin stopped spinning, as he steadied himself. Mezool tried to do the same, but was too dizzy. "Got you now, you heartless, girlfriend stealing BITCH!" Austin shrieked, rushing forward, blades ready for the kill. A purple flash suddenly flew from the bar, stopping between the two. Dice soon followed, rolling onto her side, as the armor de-activated. She was panting heavily, as she turned to see what was happening.

"Stop!" Sam cried, throwing her arms between Austin and Mezool. "Austin, don't do this!" she begged, tears falling onto his Greeed-like face. "But Sam, this is something of honor I must do, attack the woman who stole my woman from me" he said, glaring at Mezool. With no other options left, as Austin was blinded with rage, Sam punched Austin hard in the face. "She didn't steal me!" Sam yelled, snapping Austin out of it. "What?" he asked, as he transformed back, and Mezool did the same. "I had to break up with you, and I, I just found myself drawn to Mezool" she explained, holding her human hand with her Greeed hand.

"No one _has_ to break up with someone" Austin said in a quiet voice. "Trust me, for your safety and mine, we can't be together" Sam said, apologetically. "So, you, you just moved on?" Austin asked, tears falling from his eyes. "Without TELLING me?" "Yes, I did. I am truly sorry for the pain you must be feeling right now, but you shouldn't stay hung up on me. It will kill you" Sam said, placing an arm on Austin's shoulder. "You should move on too, and I think you know who" Sam said, with a coy smile.

Austin returned her smile, before he remembered the rest of the mission "But, who did _this_to you?" Austin asked, grabbing Sam's hand. "Oh, that was the mayor..." A blast echoed through the plaza, tearing a hole through Sam. Cell medals fell as she collapsed, and she bled out on the concrete in Austin's arms. Mezool back away, and turned to see Ivan standing there, holding a gun. "Samantha, your services are no longer needed" he said, as Austin and Mezool stared at him, murder in their eyes.

**Count the Medals:**

Taka X2, Kujaku, Kondoru

Kuwagata, Kamakiri, Batta

Raion, Tora, Chita

Sai, Gorira, Zou

Shachi, Unagi, Tako

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Note: (Reviews welcome, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)


	20. The Infinite Sadness

**The body, the team-up, and the Invincible Combo**

A gun shot echoed through the plaza, as a bullet ripped through Sam. She fell instantly, and Austin caught her. "I'm sorry baby, I didn't mean for this to happen" she gasped, loosing blood. "Sam, SAM!" Austin cried, hugging her as tears streamed down his face. Sam whispered something that only Scott could hear. "Don't die, please don't" Austin pleaded, but it was too late, Sam lay still. Austin sat there, motionless. Kitty and Dominic stood off to the side, their faces plastered with shock. Everyone stood in silence, even Mezool and Dice. Austin cradled his ex-girlfriend's body, wishing Sam would come back to life. A glow emanated from her, and the five purple medals rose out of Sam's chest. As the medals left her body, the Greeedification reversed, leaving Sam there, human once more, but tragically, still dead. The medals floated there, as Ivan walked toward the group, with his legion of Yummies. "So the experiment has come to an end" he said, raising his fist, and one of the medals floated into it. "It's too bad, I would have liked to see how far Samantha's evolution would go, but hey, it's just business" he said as the fourth medal floated into him, and Austin just sat there, his head hung, looking at his friend, laying there. Ivan motioned for another medal, when Austin's hand shot up, grabbing the three remaining medals. "You, you killed her." Austin said, his voice quaking. "And now, I'LL KILL YOU!" he shrieked, slamming the purple medals into the OOO Driver. "Henshin" he said through gritted teeth, murder in his eyes.

The three rings appeared, only this time, they only contained five purple rings each, as the scanner sang "PUTERA! TORIKERA! TERANO! PUTOTERANOZAURU!" as Austin seemed to freeze over, before the ice shattered, leaving a very different OOO standing there. He had more armor than usual. The black suit was now white; he had claws on his feet, horn-like knives on his shoulders, two straps hanging from his shoulders, like a cape, lime green eyes and head-wings on his helmet. "What form is that?" Kitty finally asked, her voice returning to her. Kougami's voice suddenly boomed over loud speakers, as the others turned to look; "That, that is the form of the Anti-Thesis, the opposite of Desire, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO IT!" he cried, as Scott reared his head back.

"AAAARRRRGGGGHHHH!" Austin yelled, but there was something different about this yell, it was more primal, savage. Austin breathed heavily, staring at Ivan, before he charged at the murderer like a wild animal. Ivan snapped his fingers, and the Yummy ran forward, to defend their master. The knives on Austin's shoulders extended, stabbing the Yummies in their tracks. Still more advanced, and the straps glowed and rotated up, turning into giant Pterodactyl wings. A frozen wind escaped from them when Austin flapped them, freezing the Yummies solid. A few tried to sneak up behind him, and the leg guards rotated and fused, creating a giant tail, which Austin used to whip them up into the air, never to be seen again. The lead Yummy ran at him, but he grabbed the scanner, activating his finisher. Scott used the wings to take flight, and the Knives struck down, impaling the yummy. He then froze it solid, and smashed it with his tail. All the while, Austin growled like a wild animal. He growled more, as the wings and tail appeared again, and he let loose another shriek, as he hissed "SHE, WILL BE AVENGED!" Austin managed to get out, before his voice was lost in another series of animal noises. He flailed in the air, wings and tail waving around, breaking stuff.

A single cell medal flew from the remains, and Austin quickly caught it, and slammed his fist into the ground. When he pulled it out, he was holding a weapon. It was an ax, with a t-rex's head around it. Austin brandished it like a mad man, charging at Ivan. However, Ivan began to shimmer, as he transformed into his own Greeed form. He held up his hand, and caught the blade of the Ax, pushing it back. Austin swung wildly, missing every time. Ivan finally attacked, throwing Austin backwards. Austin got to his feet like a wild dog, and put the cell medal into the Ax. He lifted the handle up, and the medal slid down its "throat" as it made a swallowing sound. Austin flipped down the other part of the handle, turning it into a gun. The Ax sang out "PUTOTYRANOHISSATSSU!" as the muzzle charged with dark energy, and a giant, vortex of darkness shot out. They all counted the precious seconds as the smoke cleared, to see if they had won. However, the smoke cleared to reveal instead that Ivan had erected an ice barrier that saved him.

Austin let out a blood curdling shriek, and charged again. "Pathetic, you waste the medal's true power on these unnecessary 'emotions'" he said, as he fired a blast that knocked Austin back into a building. As the others went to tend to him, Mezool hesitantly asked, "But the gun you used, the police will surely track it back to you" as she tried to hide her emotions in the presence of this man. "What gun?" he asked, as he crushed it into powder. Every crunch he made caused Mezool to wince, and she lost her bluff as a tear slid down her face. "So, even _you_ have succumbed to emotions" he said, raising his fist. "Then you're time has come, such a shame, we could have made such a great team" he said, preparing to shatter her core medals. She braced for the impact, even heard it, but didn't feel it. "Gamel?" she cried, seeing him blocking Ivan's attack. "Mezool, I love you" he said, as three of his cores shattered, and he collapsed in her arms. "Here, this is for you" he gasped, giving her a rose-shaped candy. He closed his eyes, dissolving into cell medals. "Well, so he got in the way, just more cores for me" the mad mayor said as he advanced. However, Mezool scooped them up, and fused them with her own medals. "This way, you can always be with me, my sweet Gamel." She said, as his powers fused with her own, and she used this new gravity power to launch the mayor across town. She looked towards the spot OOO had landed, and saw him lying there, crying. Unsure of what to do, she decided to leave, running before becoming a stream of water.

**Ten Minutes later**

The police had arrived just as Mezool had vanished. They took the statements of the group. However, the entire time, Austin was in a daze, the world seeming like a blur to him. He couldn't believe it, seeing Sam's body being wheeled away. The police were calling it a gang related shooting. Austin couldn't even feel it when Dominic was helping him to his feet. The trip home blurred, from the scene of the crime to the back of a car, to his house. Austin felt like the world was moving in slow motion and super speed at the same time. He couldn't even comprehend what was going on, even as he passed out from the strain of the combo, finally setting in.

Two days later, the funeral was held, with all of the team in attendance. Kougami was there, along with Erika and Goto. They had even managed to drag Ankh along, and stuff him into a suit. Austin had been offered a chance to speak, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Whenever he thought about it, tears clouded his throat. As the service was finished, and the others were leaving Austin saw someone in the distance, next to a tree; it was Mezool. Austin walked up to her. "You can hate me, you can even blame me for what happened" she said, putting a hand forward, to stop him. "But I loved her" she said, tears in her eyes. Austin swallowed hard. He didn't have to be reminded, but it still stung a little. "But whatever you think of me, we are on the same side now." She said, looking down. "I want to help" she said, folding her arms. "I want to help you avenge his murder" she said. Austin stood there for a moment, before he raised his hand, and they shook on it. They walked back to the group, and Kitty nodded in silent approval, as Ankh seemed to do the same.

"Austin," Dominic began, looking at Mezool. "I know we've been mortal enemies, but she is right, like her or not, we have a common enemy now" he said, tears still in his eyes "Mezool is part of the team now". The group turned away, as the coffin was lowered into the ground. They walked away, as the leaves swirled.

**1 month later**

Scott lay motionless, lost in despair, as Dice walked him back to her apartment. Everyone agreed that Austin shouldn't be by himself for a while, what with his parents being out of town. They all had taken turns letting Austin stay with them; Dominic let him stay in his guest room, Shelby did the same. Kitty let him sleep on the sofa, and Hunter let him stay in his suite. Mezool even let him stay at the abandoned bar. And now, it was Dice's turn. Dice opened the door to her apartment, and Austin walked inside, lifelessly, like a zombie. "Here" Dice said, handing him a soda. Immediately, Austin broke down, sobbing, as he had done many times. Dice just hugged him, caring for her friend. After an hour of helping Austin, Dice let him sleep on the couch, as she lay in her bed, her mind still numb from what happened. No matter how long she lay there, sleep never seemed to come, for every time Dice closed her eyes, the scene replayed in her head. She didn't like Sam, but she hadn't wished this on him. "I just wanted Austin to leave her, not have this all happen" she thought, as tears began falling from her eyes. What especially stung was that Dice had attacked her on her own. There was a knock on her door that jolted her from the sleep that never seemed to come. Austin was standing in the door.

"C-can I sleep in here?" Austin asked; his voice dry and cracked. "Sure." Dice said, as Austin followed her to her bed, climbing in after her. The two lay there, staring at the ceiling. "I am so sorry Austin" Dice said, rolling to look at him. Austin did the same "Sam told me something, before she-she passed" Austin said, placing a hand on Dice's shoulder as tears formed again. "She said, 'Dice is the one for you, be with her'." "But, don't you think it's a little weird, just, moving on right now?" she asked, as Austin slid his hand down to grasp Dice's hand. "Sam and I were broken up, and she would have wanted me to be happy" Austin answered. Dice could not believe this, was this all really happening? Austin ran his fingers through Dice's hair, having never really appreciated how beautiful she really was. "But, how could she have known?" she asked, her face turning red. "They've all known, ever since you kissed me the second time I used ShaUTa" Austin said, placing his hand on Dice's arm. "You, you knew about that?" she asked, embarrassed. Austin nodded silently, as the two pulled closer, their lips connecting. They lay there like this, for what seemed like years, until they finally broke apart.

"Dice" Austin began, before his friend stopped him. "C-Can you to call me by my _real_ name?" she asked, as Austin looked surprised. "Merry Christmas, Bethany" He said, a smile appearing on his face for the first time in weeks. Bethany's face lit up, as the two kissed again, and snow began to fall outside the window, though neither took notice.

Unfortunately, it also meant neither took notice of the figure standing on the roof of the opposing building. She was wearing a shiny blue jacket, with silver accents. Her hair was falling all over her fac. She was also wearing a belt, which had three core medals in it. She was leaning against a staff with a blade patterned after a fish. "Enjoy yourself OOO, 'cause tomorrow is a new fight" she sneered, before walking off into the snow, as a snake like creature coiled around her, laughing maniacally.

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano


	21. A New Chapter Begins

**The Museum, the Son, and the Time Traveling Hero**

Austin lay in complete darkness, as cold air seemed to flow over him. He opened his eyes to see he was in an arctic waste land, as cold winds whipped through the area. He looked around, as he thought he heard a familiar voice in the distance, but couldn't quite make out what it was saying. As he looked in the distance, he saw movement in the winds. He moved forward, as the object became clearer. Austin suddenly gasped, as he saw a silhouette of a person standing in the distance, but before he could reach them, they were suddenly swallowed up by the winds, which seemed to solidify slightly, and a giant shape rose out of it. Austin's eyes widened in horror, as a giant dinosaur head, made of frozen winds, emerged from the twister, and came after him. Austin turned, and tried to run, but the monster was too fast for him, and seemed to envelop him in darkness, before bands of light started streaming in from all around him.

Austin woke up, as the light was streaming in all around him. He didn't recognize where he was, the room looked completely different. He quickly sat up and began to take in his surroundings. He was in a moderate sized bedroom, with wood paneling. There was a pile of clothes in the corner, looking like they hadn't been washed in a few weeks. However, what began to freak Austin out was that on one wall there was a giant collage. Only, every picture seemed to be of him, either as OOO of himself. He was about the get out of bed to investigate, when he felt a hand clamp around his. He slowly turned around, and felt a huge weight lift off his shoulders. Lying next to him was Dice "No, Bethany" he reminded himself, as the talk they had the night before finally came back to Austin, and he looked down at his girlfriend.

Bethany slowly opened her eyes, as she felt the pillow next to her, only to find it was empty. She sat up with a jolt. "Had last night all been a dream?" she asked herself, when the smell of scrambled eggs reached her. She got out of bed, pulling a pair of sweats on, as she made her way to the kitchen part of her apartment. As she entered, she saw Austin there, at the stove. "Hey" he called, setting a plate of eggs in front of Bethany. "I thought you had left" she said, as Austin sat opposite her. "Nah, I'm not like that" he replied, as Bethany was still uncomfortable "H-How much do you remember about last night?" she asked, cautiously "Everything, baby" Austin replied, and Bethany looked like she had been smacked with a wedge of Lemon tied to a gold brick.

"So, I-I guess this makes us a couple, doesn't it?" she asked, as Austin placed his hand on Bethany's. "Sure does" he replied, leaning in. Bethany followed, and Austin planted his lips on Bethany's.

However, their kiss was cut short, as the sound of a Gorira Candroid going off in Austin's back pack came to their attention. "I guess I better go to work" he said, grabbing his gear. "Are you sure you're up for becoming OOO?" Bethany asked. "Don't worry, as I said last night, Sam and I had broken up, you're my future" he said, heading out the door. Bethany sighed, as she leaned back in her chair, only to see that on the coffee table, Austin had left the three purple medals...

**Ten Minutes Later**

Austin pulled up to the Mall, as he saw smoke emanating from the building complexes. He gunned the throttle of his Ride Vendor, and soon arrived right outside. As he dismounted, he attached the OOO Driver to his waist, and got ready to insert the medals, only to find he didn't have the case with him. "This is a pretty nice case" Ankh called, as Austin saw him land in a tree, in his Greeed form. "Yeah, I forgot it" he groaned, as Ankh looked over the collected medals, before tossing the three default ones to Austin. "Alright, get going!" he called, as Austin gave a quick nod, and continued on further.

As Austin ran forward, he heard the sound of a Ride Vendor. He turned to see the new comer, and saw the cell medal tank on his back. "Oh, hey Hunter" Austin called, only to be surprised when he took the helmet off, revealing himself to be Goto. "Oh, Goto, um, where's Hunter?" he asked as his new partner came up beside him. "Food poisoning. I tried to warn him about eating Chili Dogs from a freeway side Diner, but did he listen? No..." Goto explained, setting the medal case down. Austin just shrugged, as the monster finally emerged. It was quite an odd monster, stranger than one Austin and the others had seen in the past. It seemed to be like a boxy mouse monster, with aqua blue coloring. "Whose Yummy is that?" Goto asked, as he and Austin walked forward, placing their respective belts on their waists. "We'll have to plan out a strategy" Goto said, glancing at Austin, only to see he had already ran forward "You work on that!" he called, waving to Goto.

Austin ran forward, placing three medals into the belt. "Henshin!" Austin cried, as the scanner sang "TAKA! TORA! BATTA! TATOBA T-T-T-T-TATOBA!". The armor fused over him, as Austin ran forward, only for the monster to put his arm up, knocking Austin back. "What the hell?" he yelled, jumping back to his feet. Groaning, Austin activated the Tora claws, slicing with them. Giant aura claw marks appeared on it, only, it didn't bleed medals. "Ok, not a Yummy or a Greeed" Austin decided, shaking his head. He dodged out of the way as the mouse monster brought its arm crashing down. "That's what you get for rushing" Goto admonished Austin, slotting a cell medal into the belt. "Henshin" He twisted the knob, as the aura energy sphere generated over himself, creating his suit.

"Hey, if you're normally Birth's back up and now you're Birth, who is _your_ back up?" Austin asked, as Goto rolled his eyes

**Back at Kougami's**

Erika was sitting on the couch flipping through her magazine, when she noticed the time on her watch. "Mm, breaks over" she muttered to herself, picking up the Gorira Candroid that was sitting on the desk. She turned it over and flipped the switch underneath it, and almost instantly it started going off. "Hmph, they just couldn't wait for my break to be over?" she groaned, walking out the door, when she saw herself in the mirror. "But I can't go out in a business suit, I'll have to change first" she said, walking out and down the hall.

**Meanwhile, at the fight**

Austin had never seen this type of monster, and it was quickly overwhelming him. He jumped out of the way, as the monster let loose a ball of energy, destroying a car behind Austin. "Oh man, how am I gonna beat this guy?" Austin wondered aloud, performing a series of backflips to dodge a volley from the monster. However, he soon felt the hard part of a brick wall behind him. "Well, this isn't looking good" he whimpered. A burst of fire hit the monster, stunning it for a second.

"Austin!" Ankh suddenly called, as he turned to see two medals flying at him. He hadn't noticed Ankh sitting there, but he was so used to Ankh being at his fights, he didn't comment on it.

He reached out his hand, and brought back the Chita and Gorira Medals. "Haven't tried these together yet" he said, leaping backward. He quickly replaced the medals in his belt, running the scanner over them. "TAKA! GORIRA! CHITA!" it sang out, as the armor locked together, just in time for him to run out of the way of another smashing fist. Austin quickly ran behind the monster, and punched it right in the small of the back. It doubled over, before flipping over and jumping back to its feet.

"Why won't this guy stay down?" Austin growled, as Goto ran up to him. "Well, it's not like a monster we've faced before" he replied, as the monster stomped its feet, before charging again. "SHOVEL ARM" the Birth Driver announced, as Goto swatted the monster away with the weapon. Austin then ran past the monster, trying to disorient it, but it seemed to be expecting the move, as it brought its arm up, knocking Austin over. "Ugh" he groaned, as the move had hit his chest, knocking the wind out of him. He glanced up, to see the beast charging its claws, and even though he was wearing armor, he knew the attack would still hurt like hell. He clenched his teeth, until he heard the familiar sound of a Ride Vendor.

"AUSTIN!" Bethany suddenly called, as Austin turned to see his girlfriend riding up. She suddenly swerved, turning her Ride Vendor sideways, allowing it to go skidding toward the monster, as Bethany leapt off, and rolled out of the way, as the bike connected with the monster, exploding into a shower of Candroids. Every kind was there, and even some Austin didn't recognize, like a little Tiger one, a peacock one, a Tricera one, and a Ptera one. They all converged on the monster, as Austin turned to Bethany. "Hey!" she called, tossing something to Austin. He saw a purple glint in the sun, and smiled.

"Let's try this!" Austin said, grabbing the purple medals. He paused for a moment, looking at them, before he snapped back to the situation at hand. Austin slotted the medals in, and ran the scanners over them. "Henshin!" Austin cried out. "PUTERA! TORIKERA! TERANO! PUTOTERANOZAURU!" as the purple medals docked together, forming the special armor. Austin got ready to attack, when the flood of rage hit him. He growled ferociously, before extending the Fins and Tail. He flailed, until he saw the monster Austin charged at the creature, and grabbed it around the neck. Ankh and Jason looked on in horror, as Austin did...(Ok, this scene is WAY too gruesome to see/ write, so just trust me, that monster was finished)...

The two looked on, as Austin lowered his hand, before he turned to face them. Austin started lumbering towards them, growling. "Why is your boyfriend acting like a monster?" Ankh asked, as the two backed up. They unfortunately felt a wall on their backs. "This could be a problem" Ankh winced, as Austin edged closer to them. Bethany's eyes widened as Austin turned to her, and moved closer. Bethany closed her eyes, as she heard Austin sniffing him.

Goto ran forward, buster in hand, as Austin started to growl, until Ankh grabbed the OOO Driver, and rotated it back up, canceling the transformation. Austin suddenly stopped, as the armor dissolved, and he passed out. Bethany ran forward, catching her boyfriend. "Jeez, what was that about?" she asked, her voice shaking with fear. "The purple medals, they were trouble then, and are still trouble now" Ankh grimaced, as he took the medals from Austin. Bethany slung her boyfriend over her shoulders and began carrying him off.

"I'm ready" a voice said, and they turned to see Erika standing there, with a rolling backpack next to her. She was now wearing jeans and a t-shirt, and a ball cap. "What?" she asked, as the others walked by her. "You were late" Goto replied.

**All the While**

"So, who are we picking up now?" Dominic asked, folding his arms, impatiently, as they all sat around the airport terminal. "Kougami said it was someone _very_ important" Kitty explained again, not looking up from her textbook. The two had been sitting in the airport for a half hour now, waiting for an arrival plane from Japan. "Why couldn't that Goto guy or Erika pick this person up?" he asked impatiently "Because, your brother is sick, so Goto has to fill in for him as Birth, and Erika has to fill in for support" she explained

Dominic grumbled, as he rechecked the flight times, to see that the flight would _still_ be another hour. He was about to go and grab a soda, when someone spoke behind them. "Excuse, are you the guy's from Kougami's?" The two whipped around to see a young man standing there, a few years older than they were. "Why, yes" Kitty replied, as the man breathed a sigh of relief "Thank heavens, I thought I would have to carry all of my luggage myself" he said, heaving his carry on suit case into Dominic's arms. "Excuse me?" he asked, as Kitty grabbed the other suit case and added it to the pile. "Ah, perfect she said in a cheery voice, as she turned back to the mystery guest. "So, I'm Kitty, and this is Dominic, Mr. Kougami sent us here to pick you up." She explained, as the man sighed again. "Typical dad, always using middle men" "Excuse me?" she asked, confused. "Oh, I'm sorry, did Mr. Kougami not tell you?" he asked. The two just shook their heads slowly. "I'm his son, Takeru Kougami" "EXCUSE ME?" they both asked again.

Ankh flew toward Austin's house, as he had been resting there for the last few hours. "Alright, sleeping beauty, time to get your ass up" Ankh mumbled, lighting onto the windowsill. He flung the window opened, just as Austin's mother walked in with a fresh batch of laundry. "OHMYGOD" she gasped, falling back a few steps. "Ankh, don't do that!" she complained, as he stepped into the room. "Sorry" he muttered, looking around the room. "Austin's not here, he left a little while ago to go to the rundown gym" she informed him, as he turned back to the window "Thanks" he said after a while, taking off again. "Austin sure has some weird friends" she said to herself, as she shut the window.

Austin pounded the punching bag again, feeling the leather biting into his knuckles. "Again" he gritted, steadying the bag. He spun around, planting his foot into the side of the bag. "My, pushing ourselves, are we?" Ankh asked, looking down from the rafters. "Why couldn't I control that form?" he hissed, pounding his fists. "I can take being split into a hundred copies, being turned into water, generating enough heat to melt an iceberg, but I can't handle this one? WHY?" he screamed, hitting the bag again. "Kid, you're going to break it" Ankh cautioned, as Austin continued ignoring him.

He reared back his fist, ready to hit, when Ankh grabbed him, holding him back. "That's enough" he told him, as Austin slumped to the side of the gym. "Nice place" he said, looking around. "Yeah, I come here when I want to be alone" Austin explained, toweling off his forehead. "Any reason you were beating this to a pulp?" Ankh asked, eyeing the punching back. "I often take my frustrations out on them" he said, gesturing to a few in the corner, looking more rundown than the current one. "Ankh, you know about medals, why couldn't I control myself?" he asked, a depressed look on his face. "It must be the power of the purple medals, being the opposite of desire" he shrugged, before he suddenly looked off in the distance

"We've got work, let's go" he said, pulling Austin up to his feet. The two ran out, as Austin placed the belt on his waist. As they were on the move, Ankh paused, having sensed an energy pattern. It was similar to his, but so much different.

As the arrived at the scene, they saw another strange monster there, It seemed to be patterned after a mole, made with metal. "Great, let's get this over with" Austin groaned, placing the belt on his waist. Ankh flicked him some medals, before jumping into the tree. "Henshin!" Austin said, as the rings emerged. "TAKA! UNAGI! WANI!" The red, blue and orange rings docked together, forming the armor.

Austin disconnected the whips from his shoulder, and flung them at the monster. He connected and sent a current of lightning through the chords, before the beast broke the whips off. "Man, these guys are smart" Austin said through clenched teeth. He readied his legs, and brought his right leg swinging around, connecting it to monster's shoulder. The aura alligator head appeared again, biting down hard on the enemy. However, he seemed completely un-phased by the attack, and grabbed Austin's leg, and swung him into a nearby wall. Ankh grimaced as he watched Austin fall out of the hole.

"Geez what is with all these new monsters and where are they coming from?" he asked himself, looking over the Core medals. "If Taka, Tora, Unagi, Batta and Wani" don't even dent these guys, then none of the others would probably be any more effective" he thought, before his eyes settled on the purple medals.

It seemed Austin was thinking the same thing. "Guess I don't have much of a choice, Ankh, I need the Dino medals again!" Austin grimaced, holding out his hand.

"No!" Ankh called, as he twitched his arm, bringing out the other two red medals. "Try this instead, but DO NOT lose those cores!" he called. "Oh, right, forgot about this one" Austin muttered to himself, sliding the scanner over the combo.

"TAKA! KUJAKU! KONDDORU! TAJAAAADORUUUUU" the belt sang out, as the red armor locked over Austin. He leaped into the air, as the wings reappeared on his back. He performed an aerial roundhouse kick, but the monster just grabbed his leg, and flung him to the ground. "What the hell? Again? But I'm using a full combo!" he whined, as the monster walked up behind him. Austin turned to see the monster charge energy up in its arms, turning them giant. "Whoa, didn't see that coming" he gasped.

Austin threw his arms up, as the giant hands descended on him, only for a blade to come out of nowhere. It sliced the arms up, before returning to its origin, on a string of red lightning. Austin glanced off to the side, to see a figure standing there. He was wearing a form fitting black body suit, like Austin. He had silver armor on his boots and arms, there were red plates on his thighs, his chest armor was red-orange, and looked basic and was split into two parts. He had a belt on his waist, which had a clear crystal on the center, and four buttons to the side; red, blue, yellow, and purple. His helmet seemed plain, except for the eye pieces, which seemed to be an upside down heart, split into two. He clapped his hands together "Ore..." he began, before swinging his arms around in a grand arc "...Sanjou!" he finished. Austin stood there, speechless, as the new Rider hopped down from his perch. "Let me show you how it's done" he quipped to Austin, as he twirled his sword, and leapt forward, slicing wildly at the monster. He spun around a few times, continuing to slice at the monster.

Finally, he pulled out a strange, black rectangular object, and ran it over his buckle. "FULL CHARGE" the belt stated, as more red lightning flowed from the belt, into the hilt of the sword. "Heh" the rider chuckled, as he swung the sword, and the blade detached, acting as a whip. "My Hissatsu attack!" He swung it through the monster many times, before performing one final strike "Version 1!" he cried, as the monster exploded. Austin just stared in wonder, as Ankh hopped down next to him. "Whose this?" he asked, flexing his Greeed arm. They both stared as the new comer began to stroll towards them.

"Hey, Kamen Rider buddy!" The new Rider said, slapping Austin on the shoulder. "Wait, you're a rider too?" he asked, lost. "Yeah man, did you think you were the only one?" Austin didn't answer, he just kicked at the ground sheepishly. "Hey, it's ok, we all think we're alone, till we meet the rest of the brotherhood" he said, as he unclipped the belt. The armor dissolved, leaving him there, human. He was taller than Austin, and older too, looking to be in his twenties. He was slender, and yet, muscular too. The most striking thing was, his hair was spikey, but it had a red stripe in it, and his eyes were glowing red.

A red light then emerged from his chest, and his features turned normal, as the ball of light was still floating next to him. "I'm David, this is my partner, MomoTaros" he said, shaking Austin's hand "And together, we're Kamen Rider Den-O"

"Hey guys!" Austin called, walking into the bar. Ever since the Greeed except for Ankh and Mezool had been destroyed, they had begun using the bar as their little club house. "I brought Fried Chicken parts!" he jokingly announced, setting down the plastic bags. "Sweet!" Dominic exclaimed, diving into one of the buckets. "Austin, you just had a traumatic experience, we should be the ones waiting on you hand and foot" Kitty said, as Austin rolled his head, a grin on his face. "As I told Bethany, I'm over it" he playfully grinned, taking his place in the booth. "Well, I'm glad one of us is better" Mezool groaned from the other booth, where she and Ankh were divvying up Cell Medals. Austin was wondering what she meant, when he saw the look on her face, and mentally slapped himself. "Mezool, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say it like that. Of course I miss her, but she would of wanted us to continue the fight" Austin apologized, as he handed her a greasy box full of drumsticks "And nothing heels the heart like a box of fried food" he offered, as Dominic tried to correct him, before Kitty shoved a wing into his mouth. "What? I was going to say 'ice cream'" he hissed.

"So, what has you in this, good mood?" Mezool asked, tasting the chicken. "Well, I met someone while I was out" he said, blushing. "WHAT?" Bethany asked, horrified. Austin smiled at her, "Not like that honey" he said, as the others eyes went wide. "I met, another Kamen Rider!" he said, as the others fell over. "What, there's another Kamen Rider beside OOO and Birth?" Dominic asked

"Of course there are!" a voice called from the entrance. The gang quickly turned to see a man standing there. He was in his late twenties, plain clothes on, and short black hair. "And you are?" Ankh asked, as the man walked in an pulled a stool up to the table they were all sitting at. "This jog your memory?" he asked, placing his hand on the table. When he brought it away, they saw a black rectangular object with a clear center. "That's what the new rider used!" Austin said, as the man smiled. "That's right, I'm David, host for Kamen Rider Den-O, and that's the pass I use to transform." "Host?" Kitty asked. "Well, while I can assume a blank form for Den-O, his real forms come from me being possessed by monster." The others just stared, as he sighed. "Ryutaros, can you give these guys a demonstration please?" he asked, as everyone looked around to see who he was talking to.

David suddenly changed, as a purple light entered him. He was suddenly wearing a hat, with shaggy, curly hair, which contained a purple stipe. He had headphones around his neck, and purple eyes.

"Hey, how are you guys doin'? Can't hear ya!" he called in a child-like voice before performing a short breakdance routine. "What the heck?" Mezool asked, as David got back up. "I'm Ryutaros, the dragon Imagin!" he explained, before he suddenly turned around.

A green light appeared from thin air and possessed David, knocking Ryutaros out. He now had longish hair, and a green stipe on both sides, and green eyes. He suddenly bowed. "What are you doing?" Kyle asked, as He stood up. "I am apologizing for so rudely boring mister David's body without his permission, but I need to pass a message on to him from my partner, Saul. A red light suddenly emerged from the ceiling, and shoved David. "Hey, butler man, who says you get to take over our host eh? Take over your own guy!" "Momotaros please, I already apologized to David..." he began, but Momotaros just shoved him, and the two soon entered into a shoving match.

He knocked Momotaros over, causing one of the cell medals to fall into him. However, no one really paid attention, as they were more concerned with keeping Ankh from strangling David. After they managed to get the two warring parties off each other, Bethany and Austin left, walking down an alley to get home. "So, Shelby is having a New Year's Party" Bethany began, as she held Austin's hand, clumsily. "And, I was wondering if we could go" she asked, as Austin smiled. "Sure, sounds like fun, we should all go" Austin began, before Bethany shook her head. "I don't mean the group, I mean, _us._ Austin and Bethany, as a couple" she emphasized as Austin realized what she meant. "Of course baby" he said, placing his arms around his girlfriend's shoulders, as they leaned in for a kiss.

"How about a training session, tomorrow at noon?" David asked, as Austin stuttered "Sure", as the two stumbled back, having not heard David walk up behind them.

The next day, Austin was walking to the park again. He was wearing a light, no sleeve workout shirt, and long, workout sweat pants. He had fought Ankh tooth and nail for the medal case. It had not been easy to convince him, though Austin did contribute his victory to promising Ankh a year's supply of Popsicles. He arrived at the clearing, and placed his back pack, full of bottles of water, ice packs, and bandages. He placed the driver on his waist, and the belt generated out of it. The instant he did, he heard footsteps, and saw David walking towards him.

A yellow light suddenly entered David, and his hair became long, with yellow stripes in it. "Henshin" David said, forcing the Pass over the belt. "AX FORM" it sang, as confetti erupted from the belt. It formed onto him, creating the rider suit. Parts then emerged from thin air, circling around his chest. Only this time, the chest armor and back armor switched, giving new golden armor on his chest and shoulders, and a helmet that looked live two golden triangles on either sides of an ax head. He put his hand up to the ax plate, and pushed it quickly to the left, cracking his neck _very_audibly. "My strength as made you cry, wipe your tears on this" he added, cracking his neck back the other way.

Austin smiled, as he flicked the tablet, and removed the scanner from its holster. He ran it over the medals, as the three rings appeared around him. "SAI! GORIRA! ZOU! sagozo SAGOZO!" the belt cried out, as the silver armor locked over Austin.

For the next two days, Austin and David met at noon in the park to spar. David was impressed with Austin's many forms, but Scott still had problems due to David's experience.

**Meanwhile**

Shelby was sitting at a computer in the public library, scrolling through various articles she had found.

"Mysterious masked hero defeats ancient tribe...Strange masked hero stops alien invasion...Strange masked individuals seen in reflective surfaces..." She scratched the back of her head. This was all news to her, she had never even heard of these heroes, but here were news blurbs discussing them. "I thought OOO and Birth were one of a kind. I need to know more" she thought, as she looked to her right, out the window, and saw her solution. The Kougami Industries building.

Shelby was standing in the lobby, which looked like any modern office building. Leather couches and chairs that were never really comfortable. Plenty of Glass and chrome, marble and tile, and from the looks of it, and actual Koi fish pond in the corner.

"Can I help you?" Erika asked, appearing behind Shelby. "Uh, yeah, I had some questions for him, and he seems to be the only one with any real answers around here" she replied "Oh, questions about what?" Erika asked. "What is the deal with all these Kamen Riders? I mean, first there was OOO, then Birth and Proto-Birth, and now Den-O?" she said, as Erika grabbed a sheet of paper from the desk and quickly scribbled something down.

"You are confused about all this, aren't you?" Erika asked, as Shelby gave a quick nod. "Here, this should explain everything" she said, handing her a piece of paper. "At that address is the answer to all your questions" she explained, as Shelby thanked her, before leaving.

**At the park**

The two riders were sitting on the bench in the park, catching their breath. "I gotta say kid, you're one quick learner when it comes to fights" David told Austin, who smiled. "Thanks, even though I didn't exactly have a choice in the matter" he said sheepishly. "Hey, none of us really had a choice" David explained. "I mean, Kuuga, Ryuki, Faiz and a lot of the others, we all had to become a Kamen Rider to protect those we love, or even just ourselves" "And the others?" Scott asked, kicking a pebble on the ground. "Some were chosen to become a Kamen Rider by others, like Blade, others were destined by fate, such as Agito, Kabuto and Decade, and others were just born into it, like Hibiki and Kiva" "Where do you fall in?" Scott asked. "I'm not quite sure, I guess I fit into all the categories" he sighed, before standing up. Right, it's getting late, I need to go meet Bethany at the Party, I promised her I would. As David was helping Austin up, a shower of golden feathers suddenly fell all around them, and the two rolled out of the way.

They looked up to see a monster walking up toward them. It looked like the Greeed, and seemed to be covered in bronze, brown and black feathers, and had a pilot's helmet and face mask, complete with a hose. It kinda looked like a Greeed, which puzzled Austin. "I thought they were almost all gone" "Is that one of your monsters?" David asked, as Austin silently nodded his head. "Well, let's get to work!' he said, and the two riders put their belts on. Austin slotted three medals into the belt, as David pressed the red button. His belt began ringing out a strange song, which Scott liked.

Momotaros suddenly appeared next to them, but Austin did a double take. Instead of appearing as a red spirit, he actually had a body!

"Ready Momotaros?" David asked, as the Imagin nodded excitedly. He ran into David, and knocked him over. "Wha happened?" Momotaros grabbed David again, and tried to enter him, but failed. "What the hell is going on here? He asked, when a white light floated down from nowhere. "Allow me, Brother" a voice said, and Momo turned to face the light, which was dropping feathers. "Chicken Wing Bastard? Why are you here? And don't call me brother" he yelled, as the light entered David. He was suddenly transformed, as his hair was in cornrows, with a ponytail at the end and stripes of white in it. His eyes were completely white, and he had a white feather boa draped around his neck. He flicked his wrist, as a belt came spinning out of nowhere, attaching it to David's waist. Only this one seemed to have a golden bird adorning the buckle. As it attached, it began to emit its song. "Hmph, His royalness gets all the good parts" Momo groaned.

Austin looked at David for a second, before he grabbed three medals from the case. He slammed them into the driver, as the two ran their respected scanners over the belts, saying "HENSHIN" the three aura rings encircled Scott "SHACHI! KAMAKIRI! WANI!" The OOO Driver sang as the armor docked on him. "WING FORM" the Den-O belt sang, as feathers fell around David, and the confetti formed together, creating his suit, only it had white accents. The chestplate looked exactly the same as Sword form, only it was white. And finally, a blue and gold metallic swan roosted on his helmet, and it folded up, creating Den-O's mask, in the shape of blue wings. "Advent, to the top!" Sieg said, raising his hand upwards. "Um, Kamen Rider OOO, Anything Goes!" Austin shouted, posing.

"Let us begin, Kamen Rider Brother" he said, as he began walking calmly toward the monster. He unclipped the pieces from his belt, and tossed two into the air, catching them with the other pieces, forming a hatchet and a boomerang. Austin ran past him, and sliced with the Kamakiri blades. The monster just held up its wing, and the blades clanged off, not even scratching it.

**Meanwhile, with Kougami and Takeru**

Takeru was happy to be spending time with his father, but he hadn't expected to be thrust right into an ancient war. Takeru was having a hard time understanding the whole OOO mythos, and his father's flourishes certainly were NOT helping. "For you see, when Austin's first crush died and he was unable to stop it, the accident left him void of all desires, becoming a bottomless-pit, able to absorb all desires" Kougami said, handing his son a slice of cake. "What are you talking about? He's a teenage boy, of course he has desires" TK countered. "Ah, but those are fickle desires. Desires such as a new CD and clothes, while powerful enough to create a Yummy, are fleeting, and vanish once they are satisfied. The type of Desire that Austin is void of is the kind that burns in one's heart, a flame that never goes out, even once that desire has been obtained." "So, helping those in need, and a love for someone, those are Desires that never die?" TK asked, still not understanding it. "Ah, but in Austin's case, they are not desires, they are _DREAMS!"_Kougami exclaimed. "Dreams are much more powerful than desires, his dream to be able to help all the people of the world, and his dream to be in love, these dreams act alongside the medal's power, preventing them from corrupting Austin."

"So that's why he's the only one who can use OOO" TK asked, thinking he finally understood it. "NO!" Kougami yelled, and TK fell back onto the couch, in defeat. "These dreams allow him to _safely_use OOO. Anyone could have activated the gear; it was just that Austin was who Ankh put the belt on, unsealing it." Now TK got it. "So if a random person had the belt placed on their waist, it would allow them to use OOO" He hypothesized, as Kougami slowly nodded "But, they would be corrupted by the power, following the same path as the King?" TK finished. "SUBARASHII!" Kougami exclaimed, "You got it!" TK sat back in the couch, finally understanding.

**Back with Austin**

As Austin ran forward to try a Scanning Charge on the monster, a blue flash knocked him off course, as he once again landed too far to the right. Smacking the ground, he turned to see a brand new figure standing there. She was also wearing a black body suit "Do all riders have the same under armor?" Austin asked himself, as he saw the stranger had a belt too, clunky armor on her chest, legs, shoulders and arms, much like Austin's. Her helmet seemed like a fish's, with three fins extending, and two large, bug like yellow eyes. The most striking thing however, was that in her belt, were three core medals! Two were different shades of blue, and the other was crimson, like his leg armor, and three animal line drawings were on his chest, just like OOO's, only they were in a triangular pattern.

"Another rider?" Austin asked, as the new comer slowly nodded. "Well, great, man, I could really use your help with this one..." Scott said as he got to his feet, extending a hand to greet his new friend, only for the rider to punch him in the shoulder. "What the hell man?" Austin asked, as the rider held her hand out to the side, and charged up energy, and created a nasty looking halberd like spear, which was crimson, like her legs. "My name, is Poseidon" she said, in a low, gruff voice. She calmly walked forward, before charging at Austin. "Dude!" Austin groaned, leaping back. "What did I do to you?" he asked, as Poseidon charged her blade up, and sent out and energy buzz saw at Austin. He rolled to the side, just in time to dodge it. "I don't have time for this! Gonna need a big shield here" he said to himself, grabbing the BuraKaWani medals from the case, placing them in the belt.

"KOBURA! KAME! WANI! BURAKAAAAWANI!" the scanner sang as the orange armor docked together, and Austin immediately created the Kame Shield. He managed to deflect the buzz wheel back at the rider, who returned the strike. Austin then lunged forward, reflecting it again. Only this time, the other rider was unable to block it, and stumbled back. "You always were fond of volleyball" she said, before turning to leave. "Wait, what?" Austin asked, as the rider vanished in a dark vortex. "Who the hell was that, and how did she know I played volleyball? I haven't played that game in _years_..." he thought to himself, just as the monster grabbed him from behind.

**Shelby, as she is walking into, the "Museum"**

Shelby had arrived at the location Kougami's aide had given her. She opened the doors, and saw a large reception area, with the standard Kougami logo painted on the far wall. "I still can't figure out what that's supposed to be, it looks like a hummingbird" she thought, as she walked up to the ticket counter

As Shelby walked through the museum, she noticed two kids, a few years younger than her, walking through, arguing. The boy seemed slightly pale, and the girl was wearing a hat...that had a plushy space shuttle on it. "Ashley, I'm telling you, Project F-40 is NOT one of these 'Riders'" the boy said, as the girl ran after him. "But all the news reports that Valerie found!" Ashley objected running after him. "Plus, Kenny, the shape of the eyes, and the belt!" she said, as Kenny turned around, holding something in his hands. Shelby walked closer, and noticed it was a printer-like cartridge with a switch on the top, and a label saying "6" on it. The two continued out the museum, arguing over "Project F-40", or whatever it was.

"SUBARASHII!" Kougami suddenly cheered, causing Shelby to jump. "I'm so glad you could make it" he said, ushering her into the main attractions part of the museum. "What is this place?" she asked, walking into the room, seeing the decor. "This, my young friend, is the Kamen Rider Museum!" he said in a grand fashion, gesturing around. "I know, the sign outside said so" Shelby retorted, as Kougami just smiled. "For you see, this is not the first era, or even year to have the earth plagued by monsters. Long ago, an ancient organization appeared on the Earth, having been gaining power over the millinia, and some theorize was actual a splinter group of the Nazis" he said, leading Shelby into one of the rooms. "What evil group isn't?" she asked, as he chuckled. "This group called itself the Sacred Hegemony Of Cycle Kindred Evolutional Realm, or, as they were more commonly known, SHOCKER!" he shouted, and the lights instantly turned on. Shelby looked around her, to see the strangest assortment of artifacts, decorations and machines she had ever seen. "This group set out to conquer the world, using various monsters, created from combining humans with Animal DNA. However, their plans were led astray by one of their own creations. They kidnapped a young college student, and fused him with the DNA of a grasshopper, intending him to be one of their generals. However, this young man fled the organization, and began to defy them, calling himself, KAMEN RIDER, ICHIGO!" Shelby stood in amazement as more lights turned on, revealing a statue of what she guessed to be Ichigo. "Together, he and Kamen Rider Nigo..." (another statue was illuminated) "They proceeded to take out the entire organization. And ever since that day, whenever an evil force would rise up, threatening the world's safety, a new hero would rise up. He would claim the title of Kamen Rider, and fight for justice" he said in a grand voice, as light after light blinked on, illuminating 40 statues, and Shelby stood in awe as she saw all the heroes. "Now, for a more complete backstory, you can visit each room, based on the individual riders" he said, as Shelby waved him off. "Thanks, but I have to get back to the hotel I'm staying at, and thank you so much for that by the way" she added "I'm hosting a New Year's party, and I need to make sure all the preparations are ok." She explained, as she made her way out of the museum. However something caught her eye. "These machines are all deactivated, right?" "Yes, why?" Kougami asked "No reason" she quickly said, blaming the glow she saw from the giant Shocker symbol as a trick of light.

**The fight**

Austin was slamming the monster with his fists, as it plowed him into a wall. "What are you?" he demanded. "I, am the Shocker Greeed!" it cried "I've never heard of you" Austin added, before David suddenly jumped back. "SHOCKER?" he and Sieg both exclaimed "They're the mortal enemies of all Kamen Riders" David explained, as Austin got his feet. "And it shall rise again!" the Greeed said, holding up his hands. Suddenly, the field was covered in minions, who looked like black and white striped masked wrestlers. They cried out in high pitched screams, before launching into the air and charging at the riders. Austin just stared out in horror at the sheer numbers. The two were knocked to their backs, as their armor dissolved, and Sieg floated away.

"Allow me" a swarthy voice said, and Austin saw a blue light enter David. He suddenly changed; his hair was now smooth and long, with a blue stipe in it. He had glasses, and his eyes were blue. "Here we go" he said, swinging the belt around his waist and pressing the blue button. "Henshin" he said, swinging the pass over the buckle "ROD FORM" it called out, as the rider suit formed, only this time, the Ax form chest opened up, creating a new, blue chest, and larger shoulder pads. A turtle descended onto the bask, and rotated up, forming large, orange eyes and helmet horns. He held his arms in a precarious manor, and cocked his head "Behind every word there are a thousand lures, mind if I reel you in?" He asked the monster, who growled in response. That's what I thought" he said, unclipping the parts on his belt, and locked them together, creating a rod, which extended into a Bo staff.

Austin loaded his medals into the belt and ran the scanner over them. "SHACHI! UNAGI! TAKO! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA!"

Ankh jumped down into the fray, assuming hiss Greeed form. However, it looked different. While the rest of it was just how Austin had remembered, the purple chunk on his face was now filled in, with yellow orange spikes, resembling his human hair. "I got most of my medals back, so I'm complete now" he answered, as if reading Austin's mind. He launched a fireball, before he paused. "That energy signature is back, but it's stronger now." He thought looking around, glancing past a certain museum a few yards away.

The three tried to fight, but the Combatmen were too overwhelming in numbers, despite being easy to defeat. "The Kamen Rider Line ends here!" the Greeed proclaimed. "All Hail Shocker!" he cried, as the Combatmen saluted. Austin looked off to the giant clock on the tower in the plaza "10:47" he gasped "He remembered Bethany, waiting for him at Shelby's party

"I can't leave her all alone on New Year's!" Austin groaned, as the monsters advanced, cornering the two riders.

**At the party**

Bethany stood in the crowd at Shelby's party, as he watched the minutes passing. She looked down, as a tear fell down her cheek. "I thought he would come"

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Note: (Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)


	22. Soul of the Riders, TaMaShii!

**The Tag-Team, the Bonus Medals, and the Soul Combo**

Austin was clutching his chest, trying to catch his breath as the latest wave of Combatmen advanced. "Man, we aren't gonna be able to survive too much more of this!" Austin half cried, as David stood up, "DENEB!" he called. "Don't you have a combo that lets you create clones?" David suddenly asked, before looking at the arriving spirit.

The green light re-entered David, only this time, brand new armor generated over his chest, opening up to reveal a face, what looked like two hands forming cannons on his shoulders, and a star shaped helmet piece. "Oh, I've been so stupid!" Austin groaned "Everyone knows that already" Ankh called as Austin rolled his eyes. He grabbed the Green cores and slammed them into his belt. "KUWAGATA! KAMAKIRI! BATTA! GAATA-GATA-GATA-KIRIBA! GATAKIRIBA!" The Green armor fused over him, and Austin instantly began multiplying, soon rivaling the numbers of Combatmen. "SCANNING CHARGE" their scanners all rang out, as the GataKiriBa Clones all jumped into the air, striking down every last flying minion. On the ground, David was using his long pole spear to slice at all the mooks around him. He then spun around, before running the pass over the belt. "FULL CHARGE" it sang as he began spinning around rapidly, slicing like a top.

As Austin landed back as a single GataKiriBa he saw even more Combatmen charging at him. "Oh perfect" he growled, reaching into the case, and grabbed the three yellow medals "RAION! TORA! CHITA! RATAH! RATAH! RATORAAAATAH!" The Big Cat armor connected on him, and he let loose a fiery blast of energy, disintegrating all the mooks in a 50 ft. radius. "Oh, I like that move, here, let me try" David said, as he pressed the purple button on the belt "GUN FORM". The green light left him, removing all the extra armor, and RyuTaros returned, and the armor circled, before connecting similarly to Sword and wing form, only it opened up, revealing purple colors and larger shoulder pads. A dragon swerved up onto his helmet, and folded together, forming a purple V. "Big Sis says, Trying to take over the world is wrong, So I'm gonna kill you guys, ok? I can't hear you" he called, as he began swerving in and out of attacks, like he was dancing, all the while connecting his weapons into a gun shape.

"Here we go!" he called, and began firing like a madman. Austin leaped out of the way, as a shot came dangerously close to hitting him. He was about to complain, when he heard the high pitched cries of the mooks behind him. "Look, can you guys go right to hell?" he asked, before running through them at hyper speed, cutting them all down. "FULL CHARGE" "SCANNING CHARGE" the two gears called, as they prepared their final attacks. "Wild Shot!" RyuTaros yelled, firing a massive shot down the wall of Combatmen, as Austin ran through them. "Liodias!" He called, as he emitted the aura of light/heat, and sliced his way through, cutting them all down.

Austin looked up, and saw Ankh tearing through the sky, performing his own version of the TaJaDoru finisher. He plowed through the monsters in the sky, before the others walked up to him, in front of the Kamen Rider Museum, as he was struck by the feeling again. "Now I feel it AGAIN" Ankh groaned, not recognizing the signature he was feeling.

"David, what are you doing wrong?" MomoTaros demanded, walking up to them and appearing out of nowhere. Ankh suddenly snapped up, finally recognizing the energy signature. "Wait, now I know what it is" Ankh realized, grabbing Momotaros "Hey, what are you doing Turkey-boy!" he asked, as Ankh plunged a hand into him. Austin and David looked on in shock, as Ankh removed a core medal. "I was wondering what was allowing him to manifest in the real world" David said, as Ankh then ran back into the museum. "Now where is he going?" Momotaros asked, having become an energy spirit again.

**Inside**

Ankh flew through the doors, as he used his hand to search the halls of the museum, before finding the Kamen Rider Ichigo exhibit, where the Shocker artifacts were kept. "Now where is it?" he asked aloud, when a plaque drew his attention. It was the same plague that Ashley had seen glowing earlier. "There it is" he mused, and launched a fireball at the plaque. It blew up, and a core medal came flying out. "Now, let's rock this!" he grinned, running back to the fight

**The Fight**

Austin and David were dodging the volley of blasts, when a gattling shot of feathers emerged from the museum. "Austin, here!" Ankh cried out, tossing the two medals at him. Austin caught them with ease, and looked them over. One was red, which had an inverted heart on it, and the other was a gold condor resting on the globe. "That gold one, it was in a machine, I think it was giving the Shocker Greeed his immortality and power!" Ankh yelled, as Austin looked to see that, sure enough, the new Greeed was not looking so good. Its feathers were beginning to fall, and the hordes of Combatmen vanished, leaving just a handful of oddball monsters.

"Those are bonus medals, use them with the Taka medal!" he commanded, as Austin slotted them in, replacing the medals. The medals seemed to glow in recognition, and Austin ran the scanner over them, saying a confused "Henshin?". "TAKA! IMAGIN! SHOCKER!" TAMASHII! TAMASHII! TAMASHII! TAMASHII! RIDER, TAMASHII!" two new rings, one magenta, the other gold, appeared in the arm and leg rings respectively, and they locked together with the red Taka ring, creating a new OOO Lung Symbol. The new armor engulfed him, and his arms were now red-orange, with giant spikes on his shoulder. His legs seemed to be gold repaints of the Kondoru Medal. "What is this?" he asked Ankh, who just looked defeated. "I thought that would work" he sighed, as David got back up, possessed once more by Momotaros. "Of course those will work!" he shouted, thumping OOO on the back. "If you use my powers, those horns, you can fight in style" he explained, as Austin still wasn't convinced.

"Here, I'll show you." He finished, slinging the belt around his waist. He pressed the red switch, and ran the pass over it, crying "Henshin!" The belt sang "SWORD FORM". The confetti erupted from the belt, forming the suit, as the chest plate parts rotated around him, forming the armor, and the red peach slid over his face, before splitting in half. "I've, ARRIVED!" he cried, posing. "Alright OOO, let's go buck wild!" Den-O cheered, as he assembled his sword. "You got it!" Austin called back, and the two charged the Shocker Greeed. It raised its arms, and summoned more crazy monsters. "Oh great, these guys again!" Austin whined, as Den-O charged straight for them. "Don't worry, I got these freaks, you get the bronze guy over there!" Austin nodded, and quickly ran past them to the Pseudo-Greeed.

"Shocker will be revived! You cannot stop our great organization!" It cried out, as it fired energy blasts at Austin. He rolled, dodging all of them. "Let's see what these arms can really do!" he yelled, as his gauntlets began glowing with power. He held up his hand, and a ball of energy formed in it. "Try my fastball!" Austin cried, chucking the sphere at the guy. He recoiled in damage, as a few of his feathers fell off. Austin smiled under the helmet, he launched more volleys, blasting off more feathers.

**The other side of town**

As Austin was enjoying his coming victory, Gotou was having a hard time against the Spine Yummy. He tried to jump to the side, but the Yummy let loose a freezing vapor, trapping his legs in a block of ice. "Oh crap" he moaned, as the Yummy marched forward. Gotou braced himself, when a barrage of projectiles fired from his right, knocking the Yummy back. He turned, to see Erika standing there, wearing a mini dress, the seemed to be Lolita inspired, and her hair was curled. She was wielding a Birth buster in one hand, and resting her other on a rolling suitcase handle. "Am I late?" she asked, before activating a Tricera Candroid, which ran forward and proceeded to break the ice holding Gotou. He staggered as he got his balance back. "Here" she called, tossing him a fresh clip, full of Cell medals. "Thanks!" he called, placing the clip in the chamber.

Gotou ran forward, wielding the Birth Buster, and fired several point blank shots at the Yummy, before activating the Breast Cannon. He then slotted two cell medals into the belt, and activated his finisher. "Breast Cannon, Shoot!" he called out, as his belt said "CELL BURST" The Yummy exploded into a cloud of black smoke, and left one cell medal behind. Gotou sighed, as he deactivated the armor. "Thanks for getting here so fast" he said, as she shoved the Birth Buster into his hands. "I didn't even have time to put my hair up just right, I want overtime for this" she told him, walking away.

**At Austin's fight**

MomoTaros jumped back a few spaces, to regain his ground. "Heh, tricky little things, aren't you?" he asked of the monsters "Momo, I think it's time we use _that_" David told him, and he sighed. "You really want that?" he asked, as David mind nodded. "Alright then" he said, pulling out what looked like a red, boxy cell phone

Four other energy spirits, the Taros, came floating from the sands of time, and all entered David's body. "All right guys, all together now!" he said, opening the boxy cell phone. He pressed the bottom four numbers "MOMO URA KIN RYU CLIMAX FORM" it said, as he placed it on the buckle. "CHO CLIMAX FORM" it suddenly said. The chest armor changed, featuring what looked like a turnstile on it. The four masks then lighted onto it; Gun to chest, Rod to right arm, Ax to left shoulder, and Wing to back. "Hehe, MInna, SANJOU!" Momotaros shouted, forming his pose. "Here we go!" they called, as he ran forward, slicing at the monsters.

"Time to wrap this up!" Austin said to himself, as he ran the scanner over the medals. "SCANNING CHARGE!" it cried, as the OOO Lung Symbol glowed. It launched itself at the Shocker Greeed, trapping it. Austin then took aim with the Taka head, before he held up his hands. Waves of energy swirled into them, creating a shining sphere of power. "Eat this!" he yelled, tossing it at the enemy "Tamashii Bomber!". It connected, hurting the enemy, before Austin ran forward, and performed a roundhouse kick, slicing through it. The usual spectacular explosion followed.

Den-O cocked his head, as he ran the pass over the belt again "FULL CHARGE" it declared. Rainbow electricity flowed from the buckle to the hilt of the sword. "MY HISSTATSSU ATTACK, TEAM-UP VERSION!" he cried, as the blade of his sword separated from the handle and he swung it wildly, the blade on a tether of electricity. Large, energy wings suddenly erupted from the Wing form Mask on his back, and he took to the skies, trailing the sword piece with him. It cut through the monsters, who proceeded to blow up spectacularly, just like all monsters defeated by a Kamen Rider.

The two riders walked to each other, and pounded fists. "Not bad kid, you'll make a great addition to this brotherhood" Den-O told him, clasping his shoulder. Out of nowhere, the sound of a train cut through the air, as a giant metro liner seemed to fly out of the sky, tracks instantly forming beneath it. "You weren't kidding, you really do have a flying, time-travelling train!" Austin said in amazement. Den-O just let out a chuckle. "See you around kid" he said, as he jumped up, and the train took him away, as it disappeared into another time warp

"Wow" Austin breathed, lost for words. The suit then deactivated, and he immediately looked at the medals. To his surprise, Imagin and Shocker were still there. "Sweet, I get to keep these!"

"Bravo" a dull voice grunted from the shadows. Scott turned to see the mysterious Poseidon standing at the edge of the forest. "What do you want?" he yelled, as the Rider just walked away. "Just leave her" Ankh grunted, grabbing the two medals from Scott. "Guess I've got all new powers now, huh" he sighed. Austin then looked at the forest, where Poseidon had vanished. "Why is that girl so familiar?" he thought.

A second later, Austin remembered where he had to be. He took off running, leaving Ankh just standing there.

**Ten minutes later**

Bethany was standing in the center of the crowd, as Austin arrived, stumbling over the decorations. "Am I late? He asked, as Bethany looked over at the clock

"4..."

"3..."

"Not at all" she said, tears in her eyes.

"2..."

Bethany threw herself upon Austin, wrapping her arms around Austin's strong shoulders, and locked their lips.

"1...HAPPY NEWYEAR!"

The two pulled away, as the confetti began falling around them and the other party goers were whooping and shouting, as they were not the only couple making out. Bethany smiled as tears continued falling down her face, as she rested her head in the crook of Austin's neck.

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Imagin, Shocker

Note: (Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)


	23. Mind Games

**A New Medal, The L Word and The Test**

Austin was on cloud nine. For the past few weeks, he and Bethany had been enjoying their time together. Ever since Shelby's party, they had a regular standing date night every Friday. They would often be found hanging out every day after school by the river. One of these days, as he and Bethany were horsing around, something fell out of Austin's backpack. "What's this?" Bethany asked, picking up a new Medal. "Whoa, where did you get this from?" he asked, not recognizing it.

Austin thought back, as he began to explain...

"I would like you to test this out in your next fight" Kougami said, placing a small package into Austin's hands" He unwrapped it to find a new medal in the box. It was one he had never seen! It was white, with black markings on it, forming a panda face. "Whose medal it this?" Austin asked, admiring it. "We made it" Kougami replied, as Austin's mouth fell open. "You MADE it?" "Yes, we managed to recreate the ritual that created the first 70 medals, and, well, we got that brand new one" he chuckled.

"Wow, so you may be getting even more powers now?" Bethany said in awe, as Austin lay down on his back, enjoying the feeling of the winter sun on his face. "Probably" Austin replied "You think you could like, special order medals? You know, make your own powers?" Bethany asked, as Austin chuckled. "Don't know, and I kinda don't care right now" he smiled, as he pulled Bethany down on the ground beside him.

However, their moment of peace didn't last as screams filled the air.

"What is that?" Bethany asked. "Probably not a wild dog" Austin replied, placing the OOO Driver on his waist. The two took off, running in the direction of the commotion. As they arrived, they saw a monster who seemed to be designed like a stain glass bear, with long, sharp claws. "That's a new one" Bethany admired, as Austin grabbed for the case

"Ah, now to see how our latest product turns out" Kougami's voice boomed over the loud speakers, as Austin saw his image on the jumbotron. "Ok then" he replied, opening the medal case. He slotted the Taka and Batta medals into place, as he noted the two stripes on the back of the Panda medal. "Henshin!" he called out as he ran the scanner over them. "TAKA! PANDA! BATTA!" it sang, as new, white-lined armor was formed over his chest and arms. He looked down, to see that his arms looked just like repaints of the Tora arms. The claws even activated in the same way. He charged at the monster, and they locked claws, as they circled each other, before swiping down, only Scott's claws had added energy after images, dealing extra damage.

"Alright!" Bethany called, as Austin jumped over the monster, slicing at its head. He landed behind it and stabbed it in the back. As Bethany watched on, she saw a red feather fall next to her. "Oh, hey Ankh" she said, as Ankh jumped down from the branch he had been on. "What medal is that?" he asked, his eye's narrowing. "Apparently, one Kougami made himself" Bethany explained, as Ankh got angry. "Are you wearing eyeliner?" bethany suddenly asked, as she stared at Ankh's face

"SCANNING CHARGE" Austin got ready for his final attack, as he locked onto the monster, and his legs transformed into grasshopper legs. He jumped into the air, same as usual, only, this time, he held his arms and legs out in a star pattern, before falling straight on top of the monster. Austin then stood up, grabbed the monster's waist, picked it up, turned in in the air, and flung it into the ground, head first. This caused the monster to explode, but it exploded in a shower of glass.

Austin flipped the driver up again and the armor dissolved. He pulled the Panda Medal out and admired it. "Wow, this is pretty cool I, what?" he asked, as the medal suddenly shimmered and turned to dust. "What the hell?" he asked, looking around, not noticing the ball of light floating away

**With Kougami**

Kougami was biting his thumb nail, as he watched the medal dissolving. "I guess we got the formula wrong." He mussed, his hand running through a bowl of cell medals. "Back to the drawing board"

**Two days later**

As Austin was walking out of his class, he heard the rushing of footsteps and felt arms flinging around him. He turned his head to see the smiling face of his girlfriend looking at him. "Hey" he said, as Bethany smiled at him. "So, do we have any plans?" she asked, and Austin just looked confused. "Um, going to the lake again?" he asked, as Bethany playfully rolled her eyes. "No silly, I mean for the 14th" Austin still didn't get it "Valentine's Day!" Austin slapped himself, as he remembered "Jeez, It's Valentine's Day, and I have a girlfriend this time!" Bethany just laughed as Austin blushed. They walked off, as Austin scuffled Bethany's hair.

**With Ivan**

Ivan was wearing a rut into the floor he had ordered to be built of only the finest marble. He paced through his mansion, while thoughts flew through his head.

"I only have one other medal than my own" he growled, looking at the Chita Medal in his palm. He flung his fist outward, smashing through the wall next to him. He was so enraged, he didn't notice the serpent-dragon resting on the banister above him, and the girl in motor cycle leather standing next to him.

"Well, well, looks like "daddy" is throwing a little temper tantrum" Discord mused to himself, as Poseidon looked at him.

"What do you mean?' she asked

"Oh, nothing" the demon smiled, before the two vanished in a puff of smoke.

**The School**

Austin was leaning back in his chair, as his mind was daydreaming about his plans for Valentine's Day with Bethany. His blissful dreaming was soon interrupted when he felt a hand on the back of his shirt collar. The next thing he knew, he was pulled backward, falling out of his chair, and a sharp pain hit him where his head hit the back of the desk. He whipped around as he stood up, seeing a member of the football team behind him, restraining his laughter.

"THE HELL WAS THAT FOR? YOU PIECE OF FILTH!" Austin suddenly screamed, causing the teacher to become silent and the rest of the class to turn their focus on him.

"Mr. Whitaker, do you have something to say to the class?"

Austin just shook his head, as the veins on his neck went away.

"Go splash some water in your face and go see the nurse" the teacher commanded, and Scott nodded, as he left the room.

"What the..." Austin asked himself, not sure what had happened back there. He went into the wash room, and turned on the faucet. He felt the cool water pool into his hands, before throwing it into his face. It felt good, bringing him back to his senses.

Austin looked up in the mirror, and jumped back by what he saw. Staring back at him was Evil OOO, who seemed to be leering at him. "What are you doing here?" he hissed. "Are you sure he can handle OOO" The monster whispered, before vanishing, returning Austin's reflection to normal.

"Of course I can" Austin hissed back, as he heard cackling laughter. "Oh yeah, you did a good job of controlling PuToTyra that last time" he said, as Austin's breath hitched.

"I was stopped before anything happened" he growled, as the laughing continued.

"This one time, yes, by what happens is no one is around to save him NEXT time?" the voice questioned, and Austin felt a stabbing pain in his heart.

"shut up" he whispered, but the voice kept laughing "Shut Up" he commanded, but it still wouldn't stop

"I said, SHUT UP!" Austin screamed, and lashed out, and felt pain in his knuckles. When he looked again, he saw bright red blood on them, and shards of glass on the floor. He looked at the mirror, to find a huge hole in it. His reflection distorted, mingling with the Evil one.

Austin backed away in horror, before he ran water over his hand, grabbed some paper towels to bandage his wounds, and bolted. He burst out of the door, and took off running.

He couldn't think straight, his mind was blurring. All he knew was that he had to get out of there. As he jumped down the stairs, he lost his balance, and felt his legs buckle under him. Grimacing at the pain, he kept running, only to find Bethany standing outside the door he just flung open

"Oh boy" Austin thought, his heart rate increasing, causing his knuckles to bleed anew.

"Hey, i heard a commotion from your classroom and i..What the hell happened to you?" she asked, her eyes wide in shock,

Austin guessed he must have looked bad, his face flush, rapid breathing, sweat pouring down his face, a bunch of bloody paper towels around his right hand, and his knees shacking from the impact.

"it's nothing" Austin dismissed, trying to get passed her.

"No, no, what the hell is wrong?" she demanded, as Austin avoided her eyes.

"Why won't you look at me?" Bethany asked, panic in her voice, and all Austin could do was whimper.

"I love you, you can tell me anything" Bethany said, wrapping her arms around Austin. "Do you love me?" she asked, cautiously. "I...really like you...a lot...too" Austin mumbled, as Bethany suddenly snapped back, glaring at him. "That wasn't what I asked" she growled, folding her arms

"Are you sure you want to date me?" Austin asked, as Bethany stepped back to look at him. "I mean, my last two girlfriends _died_" He emphasized. Bethany just glared at him. "If you still have to ask yourself that, then you just don't get it" Bethany hissed back, adding

"You want to keep secrets from me, fine" before stomping off, leaving Austin standing there alone. Austin took that as his exit, and he bolted out the last door, running into the afternoon heat, not looking back.

Up on top of the school, Discord was looking over the banister, watching the boy run away. "Well, this will never do" he grumbled, before he twirled his claws, and a wooden cross materialized.

"Poseidon, i have a job for you" he said, as the dark rider appeared behind him.

**Three days later**

Ankh sat in the branch of his favorite tree, as he mused over the medals they had collected.

"Ankh?" a voice called. He sat up, looking around. When he looked down, he saw Austin's mother

"Oh, it's you, what do you want?" he asked, leaning back.

"It's just, Austin hasn't been home for a while, and he hasn't been answering his phone, I'm really worried about him" she said,

"Oh great, what's wrong with him now?" Ankh thought, as he gave a quick nod, before assuming his Greeed form and flying off

"What is up with him this time?" Ankh thought, as he came across the old rundown gym.

Ankh landed in the window of the abandoned building, and heard sounds inside

"So I _was_right" he muttered, as he hopped inside. He looked on, as he saw a shirtless Austin attacking the punching bag. He was out of breathe, his face more red than Ankh's cores, as was his chest.

"Hey, you know your mom's worried about you, whatever that means" Ankh called, but Austin didn't respond.

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" he called louder, striding over to the boy. Austin then bared his teeth, and cried at the top of his lungs, causing the veins in his neck to become visible.

"WHY. COULDN'T I SAY IT!" he shrieked, snapping the bag off the chains with a swing of his hand. Ankh jumped down, as Austin paused to catch his breath, before he suddenly began tearing at the bag, kicking it and clawing at it. "AUSTIN!" Ankh suddenly called, grabbing him on the arms. "Snap out of it!" he shrieked, as Austin suddenly went limp in his arms. He began crying, as he looked up. "I couldn't tell her I loved her" he sobbed, hanging his head again. "Oh please, you humans and your fickle emotion known as love, I'll never understand it." He said, grabbing another ice candy from the freezer. "I don't even know why it is such a big idea either" Austin said, wiping sweat from his forehead. "It just is. I don't know how to describe it, but it is" Austin answered, his head hung.

Ankh looked over at him, and considered putting an arm around him to comfort him, before he realized he would never do that. Instead, he just clicked his tongue "Tch" he said, taking a big bite out of the ice candy. Their attention was soon grabbed by the sound of static filling the air.

"What is that?" Ankh asked, looking around. "I got a police scanner" Austin answered, grabbing his towel off from on top of it.

"All units be advised, there is a strange disturbance in the plaza. Suspect is armed and incredibly dangerous" the voice said, as Scott pulled his shirt on, grabbing the OOO Tablet and Medal Case.

"It isn't a Yummy..." Ankh groaned, as Austin grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, dragging him out of the gym.

They arrived on the scene, to see an abomination waiting for them. It looked like a giant stain glass window, given life. It also had spikey vines snaking around its body, and seemed to have a feminine appearance.

"Try these" Ankh called, tossing three medals to Austin. He placed the three cores into the belt, and ran the scanner over them. "RAION! KUJAKU! TAKO!" Austin ran forward as the armor locked together. He struck the TaJa spinner into the monster, who suddenly shimmered, and all the little stain glass pieces suddenly showered pictures of eyes and mouths.

"Well, this is different from the usual Masked idiot my kind fights" all the mouths said at once.

"W-What the hell are you?" Austin stammered, staggering back.

"I, am the Sea Cucumber Fangire" she proclaimed, before advancing.

"I must say, you certainty are much cuter than Shawn" her voice almost sing-song.

"Who is Shawn?" Austin asked, as all the eyes just winked.

"Oh, forget about him, I think I'm more interested in you" she said, her voice getting deeper

"Oh, well that's lovely, but..." he replied, backing up

"Oh geez, Austin" Ankh called hopping down, only to get ensnared by razor wire. As he struggled against the wire, he tripped over the edge of the plaza, and fell over, knocking to the ground.

"There, now that we got rid of the distractions..." the Fangire mused, and advanced at confused Rider.

"Hey Bitch!" a voice suddenly called, and the two looked up. Standing there, was Bethany.

"Get your skanky hands off my boyfriend!" She growled, as she whipped the Proto-Birth Driver around her waist. "Henshin!" she called, as the aura sphere generated around her. The armor locked, as she placed another cell medal into the belt. "CRANE ARM!" it announced, as the pieces formed the weapon.

She slung the weapon over her head, and latched onto the Fangire. She lurched back, flinging the Fangire into the air.

Bethany looked back over at Austin, who was just sitting on the ground, out of breath.

"Well, this is going just great" Ank hissed, feeling the thorns on his bindings, when he heard the rustle of footsteps, as the others arrived. He watched as Dominic, Shelby and Kitty ran by him, but heard the footsteps of another.

"ANKH!" Hunter yelled, as he jumped down to the fallen Greeed. As Ankh struggled to right himself, the needles bit into his skin. He suddenly felt Hunter grab him.

"Don't worry, I got you" he said, as he began tearing at the Razor wire. Ankh looked on in astonishment, as he felt something warm on his arms.

"Quit it you idiot, you're hurting yourself!" he yelled, but Hunter just suddenly gave him a look, a look that Ankh couldn't quite figure out, but he felt like he had seen it on Bethany's face before.

Ankh quickly snapped his eyes away from Hunter's, and looked back up at Austin.

"You, you came" Austin gasped, as Bethany helped him up. "I'm sorry I lashed out earlier" Bethany said with a sigh

"I was only thinking about myself, that I finally had you, but I never even thought about what you had been through, that after already losing two girlfriends, what it could mean to you to be asked to proclaim your love for another" Bethany finished, as Austin felt tears fall down his face.

"Oh, I'm going to puke" the Fangire suddenly said, as they turned to face her. She brandished her claws, and Bethany moved in front of Austin. The faces smiled on her body, and then turned to shock.

A red blast of energy ripped through the monster. She gasped, looking down at the impact point, as her body seemed to freeze up. They stared on as her form began cracking, and shattered like glass.

As the pieces fell, they saw Birth standing behind her, with the Breast Cannon active.

"Whoa bro, great save!" Dominic called, running up to the Rider.

"I'm not your brother" he said, as the armor deactivated, leaving TK there.

"Ok, who here HASN'T used Birth?" Dominic called out. Kitty and Shelby sheepishly raised their hands

However, no one noticed that the ball of light left behind was growing larger and larger, until it began to form a body. "Oh my god" Shelby gasped, as it took the shape of a giant chandelier. "That can't be good" TK moaned, as Austin and Bethany turned to look.

"Well, here we go again" Austin groaned, as he ran forward, only to fall back, as the tendril of the Fangire knocked him out of the way

"Austin!" Bethany called, and Austin saw in her hands, were the purple medals.

"No, I don't need them!" Austin shouted, opening the TaJa Spinner. He placed the three medals in it, and ran the scanner over it.

"RAION! KUJAKU! TAKO! GIN! GIN! GIN! GIN! GIGA SCAN!" it sang, as the weapon glowed, and sent out an aura Lion made of light/heat, a peacock made of fire, and an octopus made of water. They struck the living chandelier, leaving an after image of three "O"s, but, it hardly scratched it. Austin just looked on, as a tentacle swung into him, knocking him out of the air. He slammed into the ground, leaving a decent sized crater, and the armor fazed off. As Austin groaned and tried to sit up, Bethany slid down to him, with the purple medals in her hand. She reached him, and helped him to his feet, and Austin saw what was in her hand.

"NO" he shouted, knocking them out of Bethany's hand.

"Austin, why the hell won't you use these, they're you're most powerful medals!" she shouted back, as Austin finally broke into tears

"I don't want to hurt you!" Austin cried, his head falling.

"But PuToTyra is our only hope!" Bethany protested, but Austin began to cry.

"You don't know what it's like! I can't control what I do as that form!" Austin sobbed, pushing Bethany away.

"I almost hurt you before!" he continued, as the abomination got closer.

"Austn, listen to me, you can fight it, your strong, determined, and won't let anyone push you around, and you certainly wouldn't let three little coins take you over. And me, I'm not a helpless little flower that you have to protect! I can handle myself and if you're too scared to realize that, then you need to WAKE UP!" she finished, slapping Austin across the face, knocking him down.

"Now, get up!" she commanded to Austin, yanking him up. She slammed the purple medals into the driver, clenched Austin's fist around the scanner trigger, and slid it over the medals.

"Henshin!" she called out, as the three rings of purple medals circled Austin again.

"No!" he cried out as the armor generated itself over him, and the beast took over once more.

Austin hunched over, holding his hands out like claws. He ran at the monster, slashing with his fingers, before plunging his fist into the ground for his ax. He rushed forward, and sliced at the monster, destroying a tentacle. The others watched on, as Austin leaped around like a wildcat, dodging and slashing at the tentacles.

"Do you think he will be alright?" Kitty asked, holding her hands on her chest.

"I don't know" Dominic responded, as she took a step back. Austin opened his wings up, and flew up higher, hovering over the monster. He placed a cell medal in the Ax, and tilted the handle up, sliding the Medal into place, but this time, he put it back down, leaving it an ax.

"PUTOTYRANOHISSATSSU!" it cried out, as he held it up above his head, and flew straight down, slicing right through it. Once he hit the ground, the monster withered around a few moments, before shattering again, leaving a ball of light.

"Oh no, here we go again!" Kitty cried out, but this time, they heard a roar, and jumped in shock. For what appeared to be a castle fused onto a dragon was flying through the air. It hovered close for a second, before it ate the ball of light. A figure appeared on top of the castle. He was wearing formfitting armor, with silver and red pieces on it, big, sliver pieces on his shoulders and right leg, covered in chains. His faceplate was in the shape of yellow bat wings, and a small, yellow mechanical bat was perched on his belt, and six slots on the sides.

"Hey guys, sorry about not getting this guy earlier, but I was working on the varnish for my violin!" the Rider shouted, before he and the dragon castle flew off into the night.

"...The hell was that all about?" TK asked, as they watched on.

Their attention was immediately brought back to Austin, however, as PuToTyra roared, and started to run after the rider.

"Austin!" Bethany called, who immediately stopped. Austin then turned around, looking back at Bethany, who gritted his teeth.

"Dude, get out of there!" TK called after him, but he stood his ground. Bethany took a step forward, edging toward Bethany.

"Kid!" Dominic called out, but Bethany just stood there, as Austin once again came within centimeters of her face, sniffing her. Bethany closed his eyes, as Austin tensed up.

"I can't watch" Kitty cried, burying her face in Dominic's chest. Bethany heard Austin give off a low growl, as he held his arms wide. She braced himself, ready.

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Imagin, Shocker

Note: (Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)


	24. The Power of Love

**Darkness, The Poser-Rider, and The Power of Love**

Bethany took a breath, and braced herself, as Austin raised his arms up. The others gasped, and continued to yell for Bethany to run.

"B-Beth..." she heard. She opened her eyes, to see the crystal mask eyes of OOO staring right at her.

"Beeeetttttttttthhhhhhhannnny " he hissed, and he closed his arms, around Bethany, in a hug. Bethany breathed a sigh of relief, as the others seemed to be shocked.

"I love you, Bethany" Austin grunted, before the armor faded off of him, reverting him to normal. Austin suddenly collapsed, clearly worn out. Bethany caught her boyfriend, as the others rushed up to meet them.

"Austin, are you alright?" Dominic asked, as the others tried to wake him up.

"Geez you guys, give him some room" Shelby said, pulling them back. Austin looked up at Bethany, smiling

"I guess I could say it" he whispered, before passing out

**24 hours later**

Austin was back in the gym, only this time, it wasn't to mope around. He was ecstatic instead, the joy over having not hurt his girlfriend had made him giddy, to the point that he had been transforming into PuToTyra all morning. He was getting better at managing it, though he still didn't have a handle on the animalistic side effects, he had noted, when he saw the claw marks on the floor and walls after each Henshin.

After his eleventh revert, he collapsed on the far wall, his chest heavy. He looked at all the marks and scuffs around, but he didn't care.

"I, I didn't hurt her!" Austin whispered to himself, looking at the purple medals in his hand. He leaned his head back in a sigh of relief, when he heard a whisper on the wind.

"Don't be too sure" a dark voice said

"You put him in danger every day, just by being close to him" the voice added, and Austin gasped

"Why don't you leave me alone?" he asked, pain in his voice

"But I can't, because I _am_ you" the voice finished, as sweat fell from Austin's brow.

"It, it can't be" all the voice did in response was laugh.

**The Park, the next day**

Ankh was once again sitting in his favorite tree, enjoying the peace and quiet.

However, it was soon shattered when he heard four pairs of hurried footsteps.

"Hey! Bird Brain!" Shelby called into the tree, causing Ankh to fall out of it.

"What the hell was that about?" Ankh growled, massaging his neck.

"Where's Austin?" she asked.

"Why should I know?" he asked, as the others circled around him.

"Because every time he vanishes, you disappear, and suddenly reappear with him in tow" Bethany answered, grabbing his wrist.

"Ouch" Ankh groaned, as Bethany squeezed.

"Alright, fine, I do know where" he retorted, grabbing his wrist back.

"Then lead on" Dominic commanded, as Ankh got to his feet

**Twenty minutes later, the abandoned gym**

"Huh, wouldn't have pegged him going here" Dominic said, as they stared up at the dilapidated building. Ankh was rubbing his wrist, which was still sore from when Bethany had grabbed it.

"Yeah, it's where he comes to think" he said, as Bethany opened the door, and gasped at what he saw. Sitting in the middle of the room was Austin, a manacle around his left leg, chained to a pillar in the room

"Who did this to you? Ivan?" Kitty asked, moving to him, but he flinched back.

"I, I did" he said in a small voice, as she saw an opened box that contained the manacle lying in the corner.

"Why?" Shelby retorted, and a tear fell down Austin's face, and he just kept whimpering

"Come on, I'm getting you out of here" Bethany finally said, moving to undo the manacle.

"But I hurt everyone close to me!" Austin cried, as his friends just stared.

"What are you talking about? Kitty asked.

"Alex and Sam, they both died, because they were in love with me. You, Dominic, Shelby, you've all been almost killed because you were friends with me" The others just looked at each other, confused. They were about to ask again, but Bethany looked closer, and noticed that there appeared to be a pair of eyes in Scott's shadow.

"What the?" she said, as she stepped closer to the shadow.

"GET AWAY FROM ME" a demonic voice called, as Austin's eyes widened in horror, as he clapped his hands to his head.

"NO! He's here! You all need to run! Now!" he cried

"Why?" Dominic asked.

"The true nature of OOO!" he sobbed, as his voice started becoming course.

"But, OOO is a hero!" Ankh corrected him, as the demon voice returned

"NO, DON'T LISTEN TO THEM, YOU ARE THE AGENT OF THE APOCALYPSE!" it commanded.

"That voice..." Shelby remembered.

"That's the dark OOO that haunted your dreamscape!" she called out, as Austin nodded his head.

"It says it's my dark side, ready to take me over" he said weakly

"I wouldn't be so sure" a voice said, as the group turned to see Poseidon standing there.

"What the hell are you during here?" Dominic asked, stepping forward.

"There's one too many bad guys here, and my master doesn't like competition for world domination" she replied, bringing a cross out from behind her back.

"What are you doing with that?" Bethany asked, stepping in front of her boyfriend.

"Get out of my way" the rider groaned, pushing her to the side.

"Evil Demon spirit" she said, pressing the cross up to Austin's forehead, causing him to scream in pain.

"Get the HELL OUT!" she ordered, smacking Austin with the cross, knocking him over, and a black mist emerged from him.

It soon began to solidify, as the others watched on, and it assumed the demon like form, wearing a black version of the OOO Driver, and Shelby backed up, recognizing the horror.

"Hello, first OOO" Poseidon greeted it, before vanishing again.

"First OOO?" the gang gasped, as the beast brandished its claws.

"Why, hello Ankh, so nice to see you _alive_" it sneered, as Ankh's eyes erupted into a fire of rage.

"You bastard!" He swiped at the demon, only for it to turn into smoke again, and reappear.

"My, in all these years, you certainly have let your temper get the better of you" he retorted, before picking up the fallen Medajalibur. He ripped a piece off of his gauntlet, and connected it to the sword.

Dark mist surrounded it, and it transformed into an evil version of itself.

"They are correct, I, am the spirit of King, the first, true, and only OOO" he said, brandishing the sword.

"The power of immortality was in my grasp, until Ankh did _something_, ruining my resurrection. However, my spirit was awakened once this boy undid the seal, and I was able to live within his consciousness, accumulating my power, until I was able to create a body. It may be little, _sooner_than expected, but a better time as any to make my come back." He reached down, grabbing the medal case.

"Hmph, I would have expected more than just one of each" he muttered, grabbing all the medals, and tossed them in the air.

"No one, messes with my head you monster!" Austin screamed, getting up, and slamming his right foot into the demon's head. However, it was for not, as the demon swung the scanner over all the medals as they fell.

"TAKA! UNAGI! RAION! KAMAKIRI! ZOU! PTERA! WANI! SASORI! KOBURA! BATTA! TAKO! GORIRA! TORIKERA! SHACHI! EBI! KONDORU! KUWAGATA! KAME! KUJAKU! SAI! TORA! KANE! CHITA! TIRANO!"

It sang, as the three rings all rotated around King, only they were in a pattern of an atom, and the images of the medals floated around him randomly, as they then flew into his chest, filling up the Lung Symbol.

Austin looked up, as Evil OOO began growing, until he became a giant, and fire burst from inside him. His arms and legs detached, as they hovered there, connected by the fire. He broke through the roof, destroying the back half of the gym.

"I. AM. KAMEN RIDER CORE!" he shrieked, and a fiery aura burst from him, knocking everyone back.

As they tried to get to their feet, Core threw out an arm, and grabbed Bethany.

"What?" Austin asked, as Core's laugh exploded around them.

"IN ORDER FOR ME TO BE FULLY REBORN, YOUR DEEPEST DESPAIR IS WHAT I REQUIRE, AND WHAT BETTER DESPAIR, THEN THE DEATH OF THE ONE YOU LOVE?" He boomed, as Bethany tearfully whipped around in the hand,

"You idiot, he doesn't love me, he said so!" Bethany cried, but Scott began to whimper.

"I do love you Bethany, I love you ever so much, but I didn't want you to be hurt. Everyone I ever loved has ended up dead of endangered" Austin began, tears streaming down his face.

"W-what?" Bethany asked, as Core laughed, and opened his mouth, holding Bethany over it. "Everyone getting hurt by my actions, that was my greatest fear" Austin said, recalling the nightmare Discord showed him.

"AW, ISN'T THAT SWEET, OOO'S DESIRE IS FOR THOSE HE LOVES TO REMAIN SAFE?" Core laughed

"HOW HILARIOUS, YOU WILL NEVER HOLD A CANDLE TO MY POWER WITH A PETTY DESIRE LIKE THAT!"

"You're wrong" Austin said, lifting his head, and clenching his fist.

"You only desire power to raise yourself above all others, a desire that leads to the path of destruction and chaos. Love is a greater desire, it fills your heart, it lets people perform amazing feats, gives people courage. The power of love I feel is the power to save everyone, and help others. It is more powerful than any other force in the universe" Austin yelled, as the OOO driver began glowing

"I do desire power, but not the power to rule the world, I desire the power, the power to save the ones I love!"

"Bethany, I do love you!" Austin cried, as Bethany was lifted into the air by Core.

"I truly, madly, deeply love you!" The instant Austin cried out, a giant aura burst from his body. The OOO rings suddenly appeared around him, only this time, they were each filled with six, sparkly, pink hearts.

"love, Love, LOVE" the scanner sang out, as the hearts all docked together, and formed a new suit on Austin. It was white with yellow armor, and had pink striping on it. His knees each had a piece of a broken heart, and his mask had pink wings on it. The aura energy radiated around him, and caused the manacle to snap and shatter.

"Austin...?" Bethany asked, looking at him.

"This, this power, it feels good" Austin said, as an aura surrounded him.

"Put my girlfriend down, NOW!" Austin cried out, and Core just laughed.

"AND WHAT CAN YOU DO?" he asked, laughing his head off.

"Maybe, this!" Austin cried out, as a glow came from his back. Feathers began swirling around him, as giant energy wings burst out. The group stared in awe, as Austin took flight.

"I said DROP THE GIRLFRIEND!" he screamed, soaring through the air.

"NEVER!" the poser rider yelled out, as Austin rammed into him. The giant was knocked over, but was still holding onto Bethany.

"What is that?" Kitty asked, as Ankh descended next to her.

"How should I know, old OOO there never used anything like that" he said, as Austin began spinning around, creating a tornado of feathers. He slammed into the giant, knocking its balance off. Austin then created a whip with a claw at the end, and swung it at the beast, raking it.

"Austin!" Bethany called, as Austin whipped around, and put his hands up, and fired a huge energy blast at the beast's chest. It created a giant hole, as particles of darkness floated out.

"You have plagued my mind and dreams for long enough, it is time to END THIS!" he shouted, as he ran the scanner over the blank driver.

"ULTIMATE SCANNING CHARGE" the scanner called, as light grew around Austin and rings of ancient characters formed around him. He held his arms straight up, and a pillar of light shot through him. The light then began to grow and form, until it was in the shape of a winged humanoid.

"Time for you to be ENLIGHTENED!" Austin cried out, as the being of light shot through dark OOO, and a hole opened in the center, forming a "white hole", and sucked the giant into nothingness. However, it did nothing to keep him from holding onto Bethany.

"I MAY DIE, BUT SHE COMES WITH ME!" Austin just gritted his teeth and laughed.

Austin then held out his hand, and energy gathered, creating a giant sword.

"Eat this!" he cried, slicing, as the sword extended into a whip. It struck the giant hand, and Bethany was knocked loose, and began falling. The fake rider finished imploding, as it vanished in a cloud of ash.

"Hang on baby!" Austin cried out, taking off after the girl.

"Bethany!" Austin called out, as Bethany opened her eyes, to see Austin falling after her.

"I'm sorry I waited so long" he said, reaching out his hand

"You mean it? You really love me?" Bethany asked, as they continued falling.

"Of course I do! I love you Bethany" Austin called over the wind. Tears swelled up in Bethany's eyes, as Austin sprouted wings, and flew faster, grabbing his girlfriend. Bethany wrapped his arms around Austin's shoulders, as Austin opened the wings up, turning them into makeshift parachutes. As they descended, The OOO armor dissolved, only it seemed slightly stranger, as they touched down, as the armor sparkles fell around them.

"A-Are you, ok now?" Bethany asked, as Austin looked at him, and Bethany saw the eyes that were like fire that she dreamed about.

"Of course I am, my love" he said, kissing him. Tears were falling from Bethany's face again, as the others rushed up to them. They were all hugging them, except for Ankh, who was making sure he picked up all the core medals dropped from Core.

**Later that night**

Austin opened his door, as he and Bethany walked into the house as the snow followed them. They brushed the flakes off their shoulders, as Austin locked the door. He threw his coat onto the couch, as Bethany hung her on the rack beside the door.

"Where are your folks?" she asked, looking around.

"They're on a romantic night on the town" Austin called, from the kitchen.

"Wow, so we have the whole house to ourselves?" Bethany asked, as she heard the microwave going, before stopping. Austin returned from the kitchen, with a bowl of popcorn and two sodas.

"Movie time?" Bethany asked, as Austin plopped down on the couch.

"You know it" he replied, as Bethany followed, seating herself in her boyfriend's arms.

"What are we watching? Action? Horror? Fantasy? Adventure?" Bethany asked.

"Hm, sounds too much like what we did this morning" Austin answered, scrolling down.

Bethany smiled up at him.

"You sure your parents don't mind me sleeping over?" Bethany asked, as Austin stroked her hair.

"As long as we don't make _too_ much noise" Austin joked, as Bethany kissed him.

**Half an hour later**

Austin lay in his bed, as Bethany snuggled up to her boyfriend. She laid her head on his chest gripping the fabric of Austin's shirt, as Austin pulled the sheets up over them. Bethany smiled; looking up at Austin, who stroked her hair. Austin reached up, and turned the lights out.

"Best. Valentine's day, EVER" Bethany said.

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Imagin, Shocker

Note: (Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)


	25. The Destroyer becomes the Guardian

**The Two in one Medal, the Visitor, and the King**

After Valentine's Day, Austin and Bethany had been spending as much time together as possible. One of the things they were celebrating of course was that Austin was now "All there" as it were.

On this particular evening, Bethany was sitting on her couch, channel surfing when Austin finally got back and walked through the door.

"So what did Kougami want that was so urgent?" Bethany asked, turning the TV off.

"Eh, he wanted to give me this" Austin answered, pulling another Medal from his pocket. It was a faint yellow color, with the picture of a Kangaroo on it.

"He made another?" Bethany asked skeptically, remembering the "success" they had had with the Panda Medal

"He promises that he got the formula right this time, and that this one packs a special punch" Austin claimed, but Bethany just folded her arms. However, neither took notice of the cloaked figure watching them out the window.

That night, Austin was sleeping in Bethany's bed, with his girlfriend cuddled up next to him. He was almost about to drift off to sleep when he heard a tapping noise at the window.

"Oh great, what is it?" he thought, as he got up and moved to the window. The tapping was increasing, and had woken Bethany up.

"Who's tap-tapping at my window? Is it that pesky raven again?" she asked, as she pulled the bed sheet around herself. Austin threw the window open, and sighed.

"Nope, not a Raven" he replied, as Ankh stuck his head in.

"We got a live one" he said, as the boy and girl groaned. Within five minutes they were dressed and out the door.

"You sure it's a Yummy?" Bethany asked, as Ankh glared at her.

"Of course I'm sure, now let's get moving" he growled, taking off.

Austin, Bethany and Ankh ran into the park, as they saw a brand new monster. It looked like a walking skeleton, but with an extra set of arms, and each arm was holding a seriously nasty weapon. Also, it was wearing Gladiator armor.

"Remember when these monsters followed a pattern?" Bethany groaned, as Ankh glared at it.

"It's no Yummy, whoever keeps making these things is really pissing me off" he said, spitting.

"yeah, I thought you were sur..." Bethany began, when she saw the look on Ankh's face that positively screamed "Finish that thought and I will tear your head off right here", so Bethany mumbled and moved behind Austin.

"Regardless, I have to fight it" Austin said, placing the OOO Driver on his waist. He grabbed the Taka and Batta Medals, and paused when he reached for the Tora Medal, as his eyes fell on the new Medal.

"He wouldn't forgive me if I didn't test it ASAP" he thought with a sigh.

"Here we go Kougami!" Austin called out, as he grabbed the Kangaroo Medal. As he placed the Taka and Batta Medal in their places, he slotted it in the middle

"Henshin!" Austin commanded, as the rings appeared again, and the eighth spot the panda medal had occupied was now held by the new pale yellow Kangaroo medal

"TAKA! KANGAROO! BATTA!" it sang out, as new, brown armor appeared on his arms

"Oh, seriously?" Austin asked, noticing that the arms still had the same patterns as the Tora Arms, until he saw the hands. Instead of the claws, his hands were now encased in bright red boxing gloves

"Huh, don't know much about boxing, but I know it involves punching stuff" Austin quipped, charging at the monster. As it swung with its swords, Austin dodged expertly, and countered with a right hook. The force shattered parts of the armor.

"Alright!" Bethany cheered, as Austin fired off another punch, which caused the blade in the monster's top left arm to shatter. It shrieked in surprise, before attacking again, but Austin managed to Batta jump to safety, bracing himself against nearby scaffolding, before he scanned the Medals "SCANNING CHARGE!" it said, as he kicked off with his feet, flying back at the monster. His right fist grew larger, and hotter, until his right arm like a comet. He crashed into the monster, which exploded into a shower of dust again, and Bethany thought she caught the scent of sugar again.

"Ok, this is wearing thin" Ankh growled, turning to see that the two had vanished. They had used the opportunity to go back the Bethany's apartment, where they promptly fell asleep.

"Some one's moving in on my turf" Ivan growled, from where he was sitting in the park, having watched the whole thing.

"I don't like competition" he hissed, not aware again that a serpentine shape was twisting around behind him, just out of sight.

The next morning, Austin was the first to wake, as the soft, warm sun fell upon the two of them. He looked down to see Bethany's head resting on his chest.

"So cute, just like a kitten" he thought, when Bethany began to stir.

"Morning sleepy head" Austin said amused, as Bethany groaned, opening her eyes wide, and shutting them quickly as the sun hit them.

"How can you stand to wake up this early" she asked, before she let out a huge yawn.

"I don't know" he replied, stroking his girlfriend's hair

"But we should probably get going soon" Austin said, as he made to get up

"What are you talking about?" Bethany asked, confused

"School dude" was all Austin said, and Bethany fell back into bed, defeated.

"I completely forgot about School" she groaned, as she pulled the pillow over her head. "With all that happened, it must have slipped my mind"

Austin smiled, as he tossed Bethany's jeans at her.

"Even so, let's get going"

Ten minutes later, the two were on the road, using two of the four Ride Vendors that mysteriously decorated Jason's apartment complex. As they pulled into the parking lot, Bethany seemed to be stalling.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Austin asked, as Bethany just blushed

"We've always been outcasts, you more so, but if people find out we're dating..." Bethany began, as Austin rolled his eyes and marched over to Bethany

"And you think I care?" he playfully asked, as he slipped his arm on Bethany's, entwining them. This made Bethany smile

"Now come on" Austin whispered into her ear, and they walked into the school grounds.

"Where is everyone?" Austin asked, as they looked around.

"There's no way we got here _that_ early"

"Or that late" Austin added, as he started looking in windows. Suddenly, a laugh began to fill the school, as Austin stopped, the hairs on the back of his neck began to stand up.

"No" Bethany whispered, as she came up behind Austin, and wrapped her arms around her boyfriend's shoulders

There fears were answered when down from the sky came the shape of something snake like.

"Well hello there Austin" Discord chortled, as they heard footsteps behind them. Bethany turned to see Kamen Rider Poseidon standing there.

"What have you done with the students?" she shouted, and it was Poseidon's turn to laugh.

"Oh they're, around"s he answered, pointing up, and the two looked to see a massive cocoon attached to the top of the school.

"How did we miss that?" Bethany asked, as Austin shrugged.

"Perhaps you would like to join them? And your friends?" Discord added, as he began to circle around the boys

"You have Kyle and the others" Austin asked, his voice stating to shake.

Oh my yes, they put up quite a fight, but I eventually got them" he added with the same air in his voice as if he had said he was going to the mall.

"Bethany, RUN" Austin said through gritted teeth, as the girl nodded and took off in another direction for cover.

"I've had about ENOUGH of you Discord" Austin said, his head tilted back. He slotted the purple medals into the OOO Driver.

"Oh please, we all know you can't control those things" he chuckled, as Austin ran the scanner over them.

"HENSHIN!" Austin cried, as the purple armor docked over him.

"PUTERA! TORIKERA! TIRANO! PUTOTYRANOZAURU!" the Scanner cried out, as frost emanated from Austin's body. He suddenly lurched forward, as if in pain, which he probably was. He jerked around, twisting himself in agony.

"What is he doing?" Bethany asked to no one in particular, but a voice DID answer her

"He is trying to control the power"

"Oh thanks for the explWAIT, WHO ARE YOU?" Bethany asked, when she felt a rag being placed over her mouth and nose and soon she passed out.

Unaware of what just happened off in the shadows, Austin bent over, his arms clenched closer to him, as he tried to contain the rage.

"No" Austin whispered to himself.

"You do not control me, I control YOU" he said, angered at the medals, who seemed to be growling back. Austin continued groaning, until he jerked backward, sending out an energy wave that created a crater around him. The OOO Lung Symbol was glowing like crazy, as were the medals.

"I need your power! I need your power to protect people! I want to protect everyone, to reach everyone's hearts and help them!" Austin cried out, as the glow surrounding the medals was becoming more and more intense, until the glow broke off like icing on a glazed donut.

"Oh YEAH!" Austin shouted, as he jumped in the air

"I'm back in charge baby!" he cried.

"You're in for it now Discord" he taunted, plunging his fist into the ground, pulling out the Medagaburyuu

"Oh, I'm gone" Poseidon groaned, before she took off running.

"You dare abandon your master?" Discord called after him

"Ugh I regret ever raising you" he mumbled, before he heard a small cough behind him.

"Oh what now?" he growled as he turned, only to see PuToTyra standing right behind him

"Bye!" Austin said, as he pulled the trigger on the Medagaburyuu. The blast of purple energy cut through the air, but Discord was still able to twist himself out of the way.

"Another day OOO Boy!" Discord called, vanishing in a bolt of lightning.

"Alright, I did it!" Austin called, as he turned to find his girlfriend wasn't there

"Bethany? Where are you baby?" he asked, with only the sounds of crickets answering, but before he could look, a strand of webbing grabbed him from behind. He was pulled up to find himself face to face with a giant, mutant spider.

"Oh I am _SO_not in the mood" he groaned.

**Meanwhile, at Kougami Industries**

The four musketeers were all standing in front of Kougami's desk, having been summoned there by an urgent email.

"You called us?" Erika asked, as she stood next to Brotou, Hunter, and TK.

"Yes" Kougami said, turning around in his chair

"It seems we had a break in" he started, getting up

"Was it bad?" Goto asked

"What did they steal?" Logan added

"We do not know, as no alarms were triggered, except that the company safe shows an unauthorized entry last night" Kougami continued, moving back behind his desk

"That's why I asked for the security camera footage to be sent up here" He said, as he pulled a box of tapes from the desk

"And us?" TK asked, nervously

"Someone has to watch them as I continue making cakes" he said, as he put his apron back on

"Ugh" all four said, as they each took a pile of tapes

"SUBARASHI!" he said, pulling out his whisk

It was a long couple of hours as they looked over the footage, constantly failing to find any clues, until Kougami had finished baking his eleventh cake.

"Guys! I think I found something!" TK shouted, running into the room

"You better have" Erika groaned "I somehow took the tapes guarding the Changing room. NOTHING interesting there" she said, tossing the tape into the box, as Hunter silently grabbed it.

"I did, here" he said, putting the tape into the wall TV. The black and white footage displayed the entrance to the vault

"Nothing for the start of the robbery, but look what walks out" he said, fast forwarding. Suddenly, on the screen appeared a monstrous figure.

"Is that a Yummy?" Hunter asked, as the others looked on.

"Oh dear" Kougami whispered, as he saw what it had in its hand, five Core Medals...

**Somewhere, in a rundown alley**

Bethany awoke to find herself in a back alley. She was lying in a pile of garbage bags, and staring at her was a stranger in a ragged looking cloak

"Help! Police! Special Victims Unit! Olivia, Elliot!" Bethany started screaming, when the stranger removed the hood, revealing her face. She looked to be in her early thirties, but her face had an "older by experience" quality to it.

"Do not be afraid" she said, as she back up, and began walking down further into the ally. Bethany saw there was a tunnel nestled in the farthest part of the ally, and the woman was standing before it

"Follow, I will show you to your destiny" she said, gesturing her into the underground tunnel

"Why should I go with you in thWhoa!" Bethany exclaimed, as the woman grabbed her arm, pulling her in. She continued dragging him through the tunnel, with no sign of stopping, so Bethany had to put her foot down

"Lady you've been dragging me for an hour, where are we going?" Bethany asked, managing to snap her wrist out of the woman's grasp.

"To the source of the answers" she replied, pulling out a leather pouch from around her neck

"Does everyone here speak in riddles?" Bethany grumbled, as the woman pulled out a glowing crystal. As Bethany watched, the woman tapped it to a carving of an "A" on the wall of the tunnel. Blue energy began flowing from the spot, just like water. It filled in all the lines, like a circuit board. When all the lines were filled in, the wall melted away, leaving a passage way.

"Come, your destiny waits inside" she said, as she gestured into the doorway

"What do you mean my destiny?" Bethany asked exasperated. The woman in the cloak looked taken aback.

"You mean, you really do not suspect anything?" "NO" Bethany yelled, losing her patience.

"You are the lost girl, the queen without a throne" she began, as Bethany's eyes widened. The Woman reached into the pouch around her neck, pulling out a necklace with a rusty "A" on it, putting it around Bethany's neck.

"Your true name, is Orcaana, Princess of Atlantis"

"...WHAT?"

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Imagin, Shocker

Note: (Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)


	26. Hero of the Water, make a splash

**The Throne, the Hero of Water, and the Return**

Austin ran through the school grounds, trying to find Bethany, as the others were being helped out of the cocoon.

"We're did she go?" he asked himself once again, but couldn't find any trace of the girl. He finally set down on a bench, when he heard someone clapping. He looked and jumped up at who he saw.

Walking toward him was Ivan, with a smirk on his face

"My, my, my, what a show you put on back there" Ivan smiled, as Austin took a step backward

"Yeah, nothing special" Austin retorted, before he reached a conclusion

"YOU TOOK BETHANY!" he shouted, and Ivan looked taken aback for a second, before regaining his composure.

"Why, yes, yes I did" he said, looking around quickly.

"And if you want her back, meet me at the abandoned factory" Ivan answered, as he turned away

"_Which_ abandoned factory? This town has like, 45" Austin asked in a deadpan tone

"The one by the pier" Ivan responded, before assuming his Greeed form and taking flight

"I'll be there" Austin hissed, as he took off running in the direction of the docks.

**Meanwhile, nowhere NEAR the docks**

"I'm the Princess of Atlantis?" Bethany asked again, still not quite sure she heard right.

"Oh my yes" the woman said, as she moved further into the cave.

"Who are you, and how do you know this?" Bethany asked

"My name is Esmeralda. I come from a tribe that has been protecting the secret of the Lost Kingdom for centuries, passing down the knowledge that the young prince would return one day" she exclaimed as she motioned for Bethany to follow. She lit a torch she plucked from the wall, and the two continued deeper in. As they walked, Bethany stared up at the wall, as the light from her torch was illuminating various carvings in the wall.

"These carvings depict the history of Atlantis, a long and proud legacy of fantastic leaps in science and magic" she explained, as Bethany stopped at one carving

"Poseidon?" she exclaimed, seeing the rudimentary carving of their foe.

"Oh yes, your guardian" Esmeralda said, as Bethany literally did a double take

"Poseidon is my bodyguard? What the heck is going on here? I thought OOO was the first to use those powers!" she exploded, as the woman put her hand on Bethany's shoulder.

"The powers your friend has actually did originate in Atlantis" she said, as Bethany rolled his eyes

"No, they originated in Europe somewhere, about 800 years ago" she corrected Esmeralda, but she wagged her finger

"Ah, I was not referring to the exact powers you use, I mean their prototypes" she said, as Bethany followed her, dumbstruck.

"The King wanted his daughter to have a protector, and so set his chief scientists to the task of creating a suit of armor. They based it on the mightiest of sea creatures, the Wolf Fish, the Killer Whale, and the great Shark" she held the light up to a carving, and Bethany saw the same symbols that were on Poseidon's suit.

"That is where King OOO got the idea to first create the Core Medals, from those first Atlantian experiments" She explained, holding the torch up to another carving

"I thought the idea was to become immortal?" Bethany asked, as the woman scoffed

"True, the power of the medals would have made him immortal, but at the cost of his humanity"

"No question" Bethany said out of the corner of her mouth, thinking back to Valentine's Day.

"Any way, the King of Atlantis had the medals given to his most trusted Soldier, who became the one you call 'Poseidon'. He acted as the young princess's protector, and soon most trusted friend. However one day, the cores just vanished, right when the kingdom needed Poseidon the most"

"What happened?" Bethany asked, as she illuminated one last mural. "An evil serpent descended from the heavens, bringing with him great chaos."

Bethany closed her eyes in understanding. "What did this serpent look like?"

"The records are not clear, as some say Dragon, others say goat, some even say fish" Esmeralda answered, walking further into the catacombs.

"Discord" Bethany hissed, figuring it all out. Then, another question hit her.

"Wait, if I'm the princess in this story, why am I here in 2011 and not rotting in the bottom of the sea like an aquarium accessory?"

Esmeralda reached an alter deep at the far end, and placed her torch into the holder there. Flames leapt up the wall behind it, carving intricate patterns. Once the flames reached the top, the two halves of the wall started to separate, forming a door.

"Because, knowing that their civilization was doomed, but wanting to give his daughter and the future a chance against this terrible beast, he used the Ultimate Secret of Atlantis." She gestured to a circular object against the wall.

"Time Travel" Bethany gasped, and she glanced around quickly.

"Uh yes, sure, time travel" Esmeralda said quickly

"Unfortunately, there is only enough power for one two-way trip, providing only one person goes through"

"Wow, this, this is all so much" Bethany said, sitting down on a piece of rock

"However, there was one last treasure of Atlantis that Discord was unable to get" the woman explained, a she took the last item out of the pouch. It was more futuristic than the others, being oval in shape, and made of silver. In the center there was a circling pattern of black stripes, around a glowing blue crystal.

"The Manos Aqua" she said, tapping the jewel. "It is said to command the power of the very ocean itself" Bethany stared at it, the light of the jewel hypnotizing her.

**At Abandoned factory number 37, the one by the docks;**

Austin pushed the door open, cringing at the loud clanking noise it made, alerting all inside that there was an intruder.

Austin crept into the factory, past all the rusty machinery and scraps of metal. As he made his way into the center, he saw a humanoid figure being suspended by chains

"Bethany!" Austin cried, running towards it. However, he stopped short when he saw the figure was actually an ice carving, wearing scraps of clothing

He heard footsteps approaching him, as he saw three shadows run on the outskirts of his vision.

"So gullible" Ivan said as he clapped his hands

"I didn't actually think you would show up" he sneered, as Austin saw three Yummies emerge from the shadows. One was a large T-Rex like Yummy, with a large tail. The next was a Triceratops that had menacing looking horns on its shoulders. The final had a large shell on its back, and a mace-like hammer on its left hand.

"Ankylo" Austin murmured, as the enemies advanced.

"Time to end this" he said, as he placed medals into the belt.

"Henshin!" Austin called, sliding the scanner over the three medals "SHACHI! IMAGIN! SHOCKER!" the belt called out, generating the armor. He rushed at the monsters, kicking, as golden blades sliced through them. Austin braced himself with his hands, as he flipped through the air, before leaping into the air with a jet of water from his helmet, and launched several spheres of energy at the enemy. The Ankylo Yummy backed off in recoil, as the T-Rex one stepped up, and before Scott could react, it had grabbed him with its tail.

He was violently slammed into the ground, as the tail retracted. Austin staggered to his feet, as his left arm felt numb.

"You think that is enough to do me in?" He asked with a chuckle, as he opened the medal case, pulling out two more medals. He replaced the arm and leg medals, as he flicked the tablet into place.

"SHACHI! TORA! WANI!" the scanner sang again, as Austin ran with his claws, only for Ivan to freeze them in a block of ice.

"Nice try" he scoffed, pushing him back and into the waiting arms of the Torikera Yummy. Austin tried to fight it, but the Yummy's grip was just too tight. He soon felt light headed, as a mist was filling his head. His vision faded, as he heard Ivan's laughter.

Grinning at how well his plan was working, he instructed the monsters to chain Austin up to the machine, only for the boy's cellphone to go off. Ivan scoffed as he pulled it from the boy's pocket, answering it, as the Yummies continued

"Austin's not here right now, can I take a message?" he asked, as Bethany shrieked on the other end

"Oh, it's you. Well good time as any to tell you this, but I hope you have fond memories of your girlfriend, you see, I'm going to be killing him in a few moments" He said calmly, as Bethany let out a wail of pain that surly echoed for miles around.

"Such a bad habit, that's a good way to ruin your voice" he said, as he hung up, throwing the phone to the floor.

Ivan heard a moan, and he looked up to see Austin had regained consciousness.

"Alright, I'm here, you have me, now let Jason go!" Austin ordered, but Ivan just laughed.

"Oh, and you actually believed me?" the other yummy joined in the laughter as well

"But..." Austin began, as Ivan cut him off

"I can lie, what do you want, I'm _EVIL_" he added, before going to the controls

"This device will make the chains constrict, tightening, until they cut off all your circulation" he said, tapping a lever

"Of course, that won't mean much when they also cut off everything else" he sneered, as the yummy laughed

"Huh, this is a step up for you" Austin noticed, raising an eyebrow

"Well, my plan is coming to fruition soon, and I can't have you mucking it up"

**Back with Bethany**

Bethany closed her cellphone, her hand trembling. Ivan had Austin, and was going to kill him. No ultimatum, no bargain, just a statement.

She made to leave, and Esmeralda made to stop her.

"My boyfriend, he's in trouble" Bethany said, looking at the exit. Seeing there was no stopping her, she sighed. She reached back into the satchel, pulling out the Manos Aqua.

"Here, take it, use it to fight" Esmeralda said, placing the item on her waist. A line of water encircled him, generating a belt.

"I'm a Kamen Rider now?" she said, joy in his voice.

"I don't know, the Manos Aqua can grant the wish of the user, and if you wished to be one of these "Common Riders", than that's your choice" she said, tapping her staff on the floor.

"It's "_Kamen_ Rider" Bethany corrected her, before running out of the door.

"Soon, the Kingdom will have its Princess back" She mused, looking back at the "Time Tunnel".

**At the Abandoned factory**

The three Yummies were laughing and chanting as the chains were slowly tightening on Austin. Ivan was watching it all, not taking his eyes off of Austin.

Austin's eyes were closed, as tears fell from his eyes. His thoughts were filled with Bethany, and prayers, to let him see his love again.

"Let him go Ivan!" a voice shouted, and all present turned to see Bethany standing in the doorway, a Taka Candroid next to him.

"Honey!" Austin called, hope bursting in his chest.

"Oh great, the scrappy one, what's she gonna do, hit us with shovels?" Ivan heckled, as Bethany unzipped her jacket, revealing the belt.

"Nope" she said, as the laughter stopped "I'm gonna fight you outright"

"Hurry, increase the speed!" Ivan called to the Ankylo Yummy, who pressed a switch on the controls.

"AUSTIN!" Bethany cried out, as the chains tightened on him. She began running forward, as the Tirano and Torikera Yummy moved in between the two parties.

"Get him!" Ivan screamed out, as his minions opened fire

"HENSIN!" Bethany screamed, as explosions erupted around him. Austin closed his eyes, only to open them when a blue glow emanated from the center of the explosions. Standing there was a figure wearing a skin tight metallic blue body suit, with black parts on it, and silver lines running all over it, almost like a circuit board. Her helmet was silver, with two fins on it, and black tears coming from the yellow eyes.

"I am, Kamen Rider Aqua!" Bethany cried, as a vortex of water erupted from her, putting out the fires.

"Did I tell you to _stop_ getting him?" Ivan asked impatiently, as his Yummies looked at each other, before charging at Bethany. She dropped to his back, then slid under their legs, kicking them forward. She then held her hands up, and two streams of water spurted fourth.

As they struck the Yummy, she grasped them, and began to maneuver them the same way Scott had used the Unagi Whips.

"That's for picking on my boyfriend!" Bethany yelled at them, before she slammed them into each other.

"Let's finish this" she said, stretching her arms out. The crystal glowed, and a whirlpool formed around her.

"Take this, Aqua Vortex!" she cried, as she performed several flips in the air, curled into a ball surrounded by water, before stretching out her legs, to complete the kick. She passed through both monsters, destroying them and creating a rain of Cell Medals.

She then turned to Austin, and shot a beam of water at the chains around him. They fell to the floor with a clatter.

"Well, I'm gone, handle this from here" Ivan told the remaining Yummy, before taking flight

"Wait, what? You just signed my death warrant, leaving me here!" he called after his master.

The two cleared their throat, causing the monster to turn around slowly. Austin cracked his neck menacingly, before extending the Tora Claws.

"Let's try this again" he said, swiping with them. Blades of wind whipped through the air, slicing through the Ankylo Yummy.

"So, Wind and Water powers, that gives us power of storms?" Bethany asked, looking first at her hands, and then at Austin.

"Hmm, nah, I'm thinking...double water power!" Austin grinned, as he slotted the other two blue medals into the belt. "SHACHI! UNAGI! TAKO! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA! SHA-SHA-SHAUTA!" the scanner sang, as the armor formed once more in a splash of water.

"Ah, just like old times" he said, stretching his shoulders.

"What?" the monster shrieked, slamming its hammer arm on the ground. Austin smiled under his helmet

"I think you need to..."

"Cool off" Bethany finished, smiling under her own helmet

"Double Hydro Shoot!" they cried, firing twin streams of water at the Yummy. The force was like twin fire hoses, knocking the Yummy into the side of the factory. It staggered to get up, when Austin grabbed it with the Unagi Whips. It shrieked at the electricity, much more than the monster usually did.

"Must be because he's all wet" Bethany guessed, as she jumped up, and Austin released the whips, just in time for him to deliver a kick to the monster's head. It growled, but Bethany just laughed. "Let's finish this!" she said, holding her arms out, and the crystal on her belt began to glow.

"You got it!" Austin replied, running the scanner over the medals "SCANNING CHARGE!"

"Oceanic Break!" Bethany cried, as she slide-kicked, and a mini wave appeared behind him. "Octo Banish!" Austin shouted, as the tentacles swirled around, creating a drill, as he reeled the monster in, and both he and Bethany struck it at the same time.

The two landed, and looked at each, the biggest smiles under their helmets. The two stood there for what felt like an eternity, not speaking a word. They didn't need to, for what they needed to say, they said with their hearts.

Five pairs of hurried footsteps broke their moment, as the group ran up to them, TK included

"I went to the school to make sure they were alright, and when we couldn't find you, we sent out a swarm of Candroids" He explained, as Kitty hugged Austin, before noticing Aqua.

"Who's this guy?" she asked, before a splash of water removed the suit, leaving Bethany standing there.

"Oh my god!" she cheered, grabbing her in a hug too,

"Hey, what's going on, since when are you a Rider?" Dominic asked, as Bethany shook her head

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you. Luckily, I have a visual aide" she said, as she motioned for the group to follow.

Bethany then lead them back to the cave, where Esmeralda was waiting. As they walked, she told them all about the story she had heard, all about Atlantis and her heritage. The others (except for Austin) were looking at her skeptically, until they was the inner chamber, with the illuminated carvings

"No way, you weren't kidding" Dominic gawked, as Austin held Behany's arm tightly.

"Ah, I see your mission succeeded?" the woman called, and all present turned to see her standing in the chamber.

"Yeah, I totally did save the day" Bethany beamed, as Austin smiled at her

"Yep, my girlfriend kicked all kinds of major ass" he said, in a proud voice.

"Wow, you two are going to make the most epic battle couple ever!" Kitty squealed, as Shelby rolled her eyes at the girl's joy.

Their happiness, however, was interrupted by the sound of energy crackling, and a blue light that filled the chamber. They turned to see the Esmeralda had activated the portal

"I am sorry my young princess, but your people, they need you" she said, as she took Bethany's hand, leading her over to the gate way, which was undulating like the sea itself.

As it began to clear, Bethany could see a man and woman standing in the gate. The man was tall, strong, had the look of a warrior about him, and his hair was like Bethany's raven-black, only shorter.

The woman was shorter, kinder. Her eyes were the same as Bethany's, they even showed the same compassion.

In front of them were two kids, a boy, a few years younger than Bethany, and a girl who looked to be about six. They all shared Jason's same tanned skin tone, and wore clothes that looked older than Greek garments

"My, my family" Bethany gasped, as she saw her mother reach out her hand to the portal, as Bethany did the same.

"they are waiting for you, now" the woman said, as she urgently gestured to the gate.

"What, I have to leave? Now?" Bethany asked, heartbroken.

"But of course, you must return to the past to try to lead your people to a new, glorious future."

Bethany turned to look at the others. "I don't want to leave you all" she said, tears in her eyes.

"It's ok, we know, this is something you have to do" Kitty said reassuringly, patting her shoulder.

"We'll miss you" Dominic added, scruffling her hair

"You'll be an awesome queen" Shelby said

Austin just turned away.

"Yeah, sucks doesn't it, your first two girlfriends died, and now your third has to go back in time forever" Ankh mused, as Austin grabbed his neck, and began chocking him.

"No, you guys, I mean, I DON'T want to go" Bethany corrected them all, and she tearfully turned to her family in the portal. They looked taken aback, but her mother closed her eyes in understanding, and her father nodded silently, approving.

"I always did want to know who my real family is, but I wouldn't trade my boyfriend for that" she said, as Austin quietly stopped strangling Ankh. The people in the portal nodded, understanding their son's choice.

"I'm sorry Esmeralda, but I'm not going back in time, I'm staying right here" Bethany said with emphasis.

"But, you are royalty!" She stammered. She tried to reach for Bethany, but the others all circled around him, and Scott pulled Jason behind him

"Look lady, Bethany said NO" Shelby reiterated, putting herself between her and the rest of the group

"Atlantis is gone, I'm sorry, but the past has to stay in the past" TK added

"He's right, besides, everyone knows that when you start monkeying around with the past you end up with monkeys ruling the future" Dominic stated. Kitty just stared at him in disbelief.

"She's not going back, and that's FINAL" Austin finished, brandishing the Medajalibur.

"But the portal must be used! The Princess MUST go through!" she shrieked, making a mad dash for Bethany.

"I said, NO!" Bethany shouted, kicking her square in the chest, sending her flying back into the portal

As she fell into it, the wall began to collapse, as did the ceiling.

"this whole place is coming down!" Dominic yelled out, and the group ran out of the room, but Bethany lingered for a second

"Goodbye" she said tearfully, before rejoining the others as they fled.

The cavern fell in on itself, burying the portal, but not before a gruff and angry voice escaped it, but for none to hear it say "What do you mean you told him 'Time Travel'?"

A cloud of dust preceded the gang as they left the catacombs, Bethany walking limply, holding onto Austin for support

"You ok?" Austin asked weakly, as they emerged from the tunnels, he placed an arm around Bethany

"Not really" she responded. "How about now?" Austin asked, as he kissed Bethany

"Yeah, that helps" she said, her face blushing

"And if I got you your favorite Pizza and Ice Cream?" he added

"That helps a lot" she smiled, placing her head on Austin's shoulder. The others just watched, not sure of what to say, when someone spoke

"Aw, how sickingly sweet" a voice said, and they all turned to see Poseidon standing there

"Picking your boyfriend over your civilization" she added, before generating her staff

"You ready baby?" Austin asked, as Bethany nodded. They both placed their belts on their waists, and Austin scanned the Medals

"HENSHIN!" they cried

"TAKA! TORA! BATTA! TA-TO-BA-T-T-T-TATOBA!" the scanner sang, as Bethany's belt released a vortex of water, engulfing her. Their armor finalized, as the light died down.

"Right, forgot you have powers too now" she said, slight hesitation in her voice. She held up her staff, and fired a buzz saw of water. Austin jumped with the Batta Legs, but Bethany held her hands, and absorbed it into the ball of deep blue water she was holding. She spun around, controlling it, and sent it back, splitting into dozens of dark blue water buzz saws. They all hit, and Poseidon looked up to see to her horror that Austin was falling down to earth, trailing the Tora Claws with him. He cut right through Poseidon, leaving glowing green streaks in her.

"We got her on the ropes now!" Bethany called "Think it's time for another finisher move"

"Just a sec" Austin replied, replacing the Tora and Batta Medals with the Kujaku and Kondoru Medals

"TAKA! KUJAKU! KONDORU! TAJAAAAAADORUUUUU!" the scanner sang, as the fiery aura radiated from him.

"Opposing elements, Fire and Water, should be really powerful" Austin explained, as Bethany was just looking at him confused, who just shrugged now. Austin ran the scanner over the medals once more.

"SCANNING CHARGE!" OOO flipped into the air, his feet splitting into Talons of fire. At the top of his ark, he flipped back, and made a mad charge at Poseidon.

"Well, I'm gone" she said, turning to leave, when she was stopped by a flux of water "Aqua Vortex!" Bethany shouted, and their respective kicks hit the rider at the exact same time.

"GAH!" she screamed, as energy sparked from her suit, overloading due to the opposing elements. She fell to the ground, unable to get up.

"Finally, I thought we'd have to keep fighting her FOREVER" Ankh snipped, as the others ran up behind them.

"And now, to find out who you really are" Austin said, tearing the driver off the fallen rider. The armor dissipated, and Austin fell back trembling.

"Hey, looks like your still wearing that bracelet" the human said, as Austin's eyes widened in horror, and Shelby gasped.

"...Alex?..."

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Imagin, Shocker

Note: Anyone see that ending coming? Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories! I am dead series about this, I would seriously like for people to give me reviews


	27. How to kill a god

**The Guardian, The Replacement, and the Showdown**

"N-No...It can't be..." Austin gasped, his eyes wide. He had fallen to the ground, trembling. For standing before him was his former love, Alex Vanveen. Sure she was all grown up, but Austin knew it was Alex.

"It is!" she said in a sort of sing-song voice, as she grabbed the Driver from Austin.

"And now, I'll be off!" she said, as she vanished in a puff of smoke

They just stood there for what felt like an eternity, until someone finally spoke

"...Alex...?" Kitty quietly asked, not sure what was going on.

"My, my Sister!" Shelby said, as she broke into a crying fit, her head in her hands

She, TK, Dominic and Bethany just exchanged looks, while Ankh was lost in thought.

The next day, Austin wasn't much better. He had been silent through all his classes. Bethany was beginning to worry about him. At lunch, she finally found Austin under their tree in the courtyard. She sat down next to her friend, and tried to get his attention

"Hey, want some Brownies I made?" she asked, as she held the baggie in front of Austin's face. He just remained solemn and pushed the bag away

"Ok, this you being silent thing, it isn't working for me" Bethany groaned, not expecting Austin's reaction. She felt the enraged teen's fist on her face. She fell backwards, and massaged her cheek, cursing

"What the hell man?" she asked

"SHE'S ALIVE!" Austin shouted, as Bethany just looked away

"The love of my life that I thought was dead is ALIVE!" he yelled out

"And how does punching me enter into this?" Bethany asked, touching the stinging spot where the fist hit

"I-I don't know" Austin wept, sliding against the tree. When Bethany felt it was safe, she returned to his side, and wrapped her arms around Austin

"It's ok" she said, as Austin rested his head against Bethany's

Across campus, Shelby had been fairing little better

Dominic was looking away, trying not to make a scene, as Shelby was bawling into her jacket. He looked away, before handing her another tissue

He couldn't think of what to say to her, and was actually relieved to see colorful explosions off in the distance

Bethany had seen them, and stood, ready to head off, when she noticed Austin wasn't on his feet yet.

"Come on" Bethany ordered, grabbing him by the arm, dragging him to the commotion

As the two arrived downtown, they saw a horrendous sight. It was a massive creature, as big as the capital building. It was slimy green, with dragon wings. It's body was humanoid, yet it had an octopus for a head

"Oh great, and now Cthulhu's here" Bethany smirked, as Austin just walked forward. Without even saying a word, he placed the OOO Driver on his waist and placed the three purple medals in it.

"Henshin" Austin calmly said, as the three rings circled him, creating the armor. He slowly reached down and grabbed the Medagaburyuu from the earth, and took off at the abomination at high speed.

"Oh, this is gonna be messy" Bethany realized, and quickly ran under a nearby bus stop, just in time to avoid being hit by a falling tentacle. Bethany looked up in time to see Shelby and Dominic running up, and motioned for them to join her

"Where is she?" Shelby demanded, grabbing the girl's shirt

"W-Who?" Bethany asked, as Shelby let her go

"Poseidon, I know she's here" Shelby growled, looking up at Cthulhu

"She's always around when these freaks show up" she said, as she saw another tentacle fall off the squid

"Man he is pissed" Dominic observed, when they heard to Ride Vendors pull up. Only, it wasn't Goto and Hunter, it was Erika and TK

"Where's Hunter?" Dominic asked

"And Goto?" Shelby added

"Well, Hunter broke his leg at the gym, he overexerted himself, and Goto has Jury Duty" Erika explained, as she clipped the belt around her waist.

She took a cell medal out of the pack, kissed it, and then placed it into the Driver

"Henshin!" She called, twisting the knob. The armor sphere generated around her, as the armor was built.

"Not exactly my color" she said, before picking up the birth buster and firing at Cthulhu

"So we just cower here?" Dominic asked, as TK put a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, I brought enough to share" he said, opening his back pack. Inside were four Birth Busters.

"That will work" Dominic replied, picking one up. He ran at the monster, as he loaded a clip of cell medals.

"Take this you punk squid!" Dominic shouted, turning the gun sideways, only for it to fall out of his hands

"'Gangsta' style actually worsens your aim" Kitty scolded him, as she fired a few rounds, hitting the monster in the eye

"And guns this big need both hands" TK offered, as he fired a few shots as well

"We gonna sit around all day and discuss proper gun handling, or are we gonna help my boyfriend!?" Bethany yelled, as she charged forward, firing a volley of shots. The others just looked at each other, shrugged, and charged after her. Unfortunately, their shots did nothing to faze the god. Not even Erika was able to dent it

"Damn," she complained, as the drill just bounced off the scales. She ducked out of the way of a tentacle lashing out at her. She quickly activated the cutter wings, and dodged.

"What does it take to kill this thing?" She asked in frustration

"That's the beauty of it!" Discord suddenly said, as they all looked around

"There!" TK called, pointing to a nearby building, where he was, in fact, hovering over it

"Cthulhu here is a GOD, There is no killing him!" He burst out laughing, as Austin was caught in its clawed hand.

"No, Austin's going to die!" Shelby cried, as Bethany ran forward, followed by Kitty and Dominic

"Hey, squid brain!" Bethany shouted, as Cthulhu turned to look down at them

"Austin's definitely going to take you down, 'cause that's just the kind of awesome crap he can do!" Dominic called, as his eyes turned grey

"Austin can do anything, cause he knows his friends are always with him!" Kitty added, as her eyes turned blue

"My Austin can do anything, and I know it. Our love lets us exceed to bounds of reality!" Bethany shouted, her eyes turning yellow

"No one hurts our friend!" they all shouted, as they seemed to be glowing. The fallen medals started to rise up, and weak electricity flowed through them

"But, what can we do?" Shelby asked, as TK came up as well

"No idea" he responded, as he suddenly began glowing green

"But if there is anything I can do, of course I'm going to try, I always give my all to help my friends!" he said, standing in between Kitty and Bethany

"My friends" Shelby thought

"My first real friends" she whispered, standing between Bethany and Dominic

"They taught me how to be kind, how to truly be a friend" she realized, as she was suddenly glowing orange

"i have no idea why we're all babbling like idiots" Ankh groaned, rolling his eyes as he took flight.

"But I know I'm not going to let you hurt my friend. Yeah, that's right, I said it, Austin is my friend!" Ankh yelled out, as he saw the others staring at him

"And there is no way I'm letting my friend go into battle without back up, I'd follow him to hell and back" Ankh affirmed, as he began to glow red

Cthulhu just looked confused by all this. Why were these puny mortals standing up to him? He was a god!

"They're right you know" Austin wheezed, as Cthulhu looked down at him

"The feelings my friends have, the bond we share, it's what gives me hope, what gives me strength. It's that power that I can fight, that I can survive. And that power is, Courage!" Austin shouted, as the clawed hand began to squirm in pain.

Scott was now glowing like the others, as purple as the armor surrounding him

"We're with you Austin!" they all shouted, as their auras flew through the air, and merged with his own. He was now glowing with all the colors of the rainbow, as he raised the Ax. All the cell medals in Erika and TK's packs began to float up, and slotted into the ax, as it called out

"PUTOTYRANO HISSATSU!" an aura blade extended from the Ax.

"Grand of Rage!" Austin shouted, only there seemed to be a strange echo in his voice, like someone else was yelling with him. Austin flew straight down, splitting the old one in two. The monster crumbled, becoming ash, as the others cheered

"You just sliced through Cthulhu!" Discord screamed, enraged. He watched as Austin descended onto the roof of the building.

"And you're next" he said, pointing the ax and Medajalibur at him. Discord tried to run, but Erika alighted on the opposite side, blocking him. As Discord tried to go to the stairs, the others burst in through the door, their blasters trained on him.

"Friendship is magic, bitch" Kitty sneered. However, they were knocked to the ground by Alex, who teleported into the field.

"Ah, so nice of you to join us" he said dryly, as Alex backed up, protecting her master

"Why are you doing this Alex?" Austin asked, jumping down onto the roof

"Because he is my master" she answered, as Austin walked closer

"No, the Alex I know wouldn't let anyone control her, not even her own father" he said, shaking his head

"I guess I'm just a new woman then" she responded, charging with her blade. Scott countered with the Medajalibur, as he advanced too

"No, not even he would be able to make you try to kill me" Austin said, his voice starting to contain anger

"Oh, right, cause the only reason a girl would have to exact her revenge would be because she was brainwashed?" Alex responded, her voice shaking

"Why, what are you trying say?" he asked, inadvertently lowering his guard. Alex took advantage and smacked him to the ground. As the others tried to intervene, Discord erected a barrier of ice, blocking them. Alex reached down, and grabbed Austin by his neck, and lifted him into the air.

"Discord saved me, he saved me when no one else could, or would, not even my precious boyfriend!" Zeke said, the bitterness dripping from his words

"No, you're wrong, Alex, you told me to let go, I wouldn't!" Austin cried, as Shelby helped him up.

"Austin's right, I saw in his memories, you let go of his hand!" she yelled

"Don't you know, memories are INCREDIBLY unreliable" Alex retorted

"No, I KNOW that was the truth I saw, because when a memory like that haunts you every time you close your eyes, and always has, never changing and detail. You know, you know then that it has to be true!" Austin retorted, his voice shaking. Alex stepped back, as her armor suddenly flashed, and dissolved, the driver falling to the ground with a clatter.

Alex backed away, realizing Austin was right. She clutched her head, suddenly over came with pain. Austin noticed her eyes were changing color, returning to the color they were before

"What did you do to me!?" she shouted, firing an energy wave

Austin didn't make an attempt to dodge

"Get out of there man!" TK shouted, but Austin still refused to move. However, the wave of water was disrupted by a fireball as Ankh landed in front of Austin, reverting to his human form.

"So YOU'RE the one messing with my Yummy senses" Ankh snarled, glaring at Discord

"And if it isn't your little pet peacock" Discord mused, as Ankh's face twisted in rage

"PEACOCK?!" he said, as he rushed at the serpent, knocking them both off the ledge. Shelby quickly ran up to Austin and grabbed his arm

"Snap out of it, I need your help" she hissed, pulling him up

"What..?" he asked, as she pointed at Alex

"She's not moving, now's our chance to get through to her!" she said, as Austin understood. While Discord was distracted by Ankh, Shelby and Austin managed to get to Alex, who was just standing there.

"Alex, please, listen to my voice, this isn't you!" Shelby cried out, as Alex just stared

"Isn't...me..?" she whispered, as Discord looked back at her terrified

"Oh no you don't" he said, sprinkling dust on him. Her eyes suddenly glowed black again, as the armor formed over her

"Nice try you idiots" he mocked, swinging his spear

"It was a nice try, we were getting through to her!" Ashley whispered to Austin, who nodded

"Discord's mind screwing dust doesn't last forever, we need to preoccupy him long enough, overwhelm him!" Austin responded, pulling out the green medals.

"And what better to overwhelm than a sea of green?" he asked, scanning them

"KUWAGATA! KAMAKIRI! BATTA! GAATA-GATA-GATA-KIRIBA! GATAKIRIBA!"

The green armor replaced the purple, and Austin soon became a small army. They all began running at Discord, who just swatted them away like, well, like bugs. However, every time we sent ten to the skies, twenty more replaced them

As Discord was becoming overwhelmed, Shelby and the real Austin reached Alex again. She recoiled as she saw them, but Shelby shook her head

"It's ok, we don't want to hurt you" she said, as Alex lowered her weapon

"Why should I believe you, I don't know you" she said, unsure

"How can you not know me Alex? I'm your sister!" Shelby cried, as Alex's eyes widened

"N-No, it can't be!" she whimpered, backing away

"Shelby!" she cried out, falling into her arms

"Alex" she said, as Austin watched, touched by their sister-sister moment

"Austin, I am so sorry" Alex said, wiping her eyes.

"It's ok" he responded, as they pulled into a hug

"Discord took me to this crazy place, it was so awesome though, but he told me everyone had forgotten about me" she said, as Austin just tightened his grip

"That's crazy, of course we remembered you" he said, as tears fell from Alex's face. Their happiness was interrupted by the loudest, angriest howl of rage either had heard. Discord's tail wrapped around Austin, and through him into the air, right over the edge of the building

"Oh, so unwise. You think you have seen the full force of my rage? Think again OOO, next time WILL be the final time" Discord growled, as he teleported him and Alex away

Austin fell through the air, not believing this, when he felt something grab him. He looked back to see Erika holding him

"I got you" She said, as she lowered him to the ground. In a few moments, the others came running out of the building, as Bethany put her arms around Austin

"I WILL save you Alex, mark my words, I WILL" Austin whispered, looking of in the distance

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Imagin, Shocker

Kangaroo

Note: (Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)

Bottom of Form


	28. Taste the Rainbow

**Harmony, Freedom, and the missing Medals**

Austin was standing at the window of his room, a determined look on his face.

"Look, we know you want to get her back, but stop staring out the window, it's creeping me out!" Shelby objected, as he just pretended not to notice.

"I still don't get it, how did we glow like that?" Kitty asked, looking at herself in the mirror, as Dominic was straining himself

"Grrr, I think...I think I...can...feeeeeeeel" he groaned, as his face turned red

"What?! Fell what?!" she asked, as he collapsed

"A hernia forming" he responded, as she smacked his head

"I just remember seeing bright lights, kinda like the medals" Bethany said, as she sat on the edge of the bed. They just sat in silence, before Austin sprang to life

"Of course, that's it!" Austin cheered, as he looked down at the case

"What's it?" Ankh asked, skeptically

"The medals, they were responding to your desire, your desire to save me!" Austin said, understanding. He opened the case, as he looked at the cores

"Please, if you can hear me, please, take us to where Discord has Alex!" Austin cried, as tears fell down his face. However, they remained as they were.

"Dude, the medals can't do anything like that" Ankh laughed, as he pushed his hand into his chest and pulled out a fistful of cell medals

"Sure, they feed of desire, but they aren't magical" he chastised, stuffing them back in

"That's as crazy as saying the human heart or the power of friendship can create miracles" Ankh muttered, chomping on a Popsicle. Kitty was about to correct Ankh, when Bethany grabbed her

"Hey, no friendship speeches, we don't want you turning into Teá Gardner here" she said, turning her away

"Don't worry" Bethany told Austin.

"I trust you, and if you believe in the Medal's powers, then, so do I" she said, placing a hand over Austin's.

Suddenly, the medal case erupted in a bright light of color

"I have been wrong before" Ankh grumbled, before they all vanished in a clap of thunder.

When vision returned to Austin, he saw what could only be described as what happened when a kids cartoon threw up on a mountain side. The entire thing was so colorful that Scott's eyes began to hurt. Aside from all the color, there were mounds of desserts just lying everywhere, forming mountains. There were toys piled everywhere, and a waterfall fell into a sparkling pool nearby

Bethany ran over to it, and tasted the liquid.

"Hey, it's Soda!" she said, as he began to drink from it desperately.

"No way!" Dominic cheered, putting his head under the water too

"Come on guys, now's not the time for goofing off" Kitty gently scolded, as the two got back up and joined the group, their heads hung sheepishly.

"Alright, time to find Discord" Ankh growled, when TK began to point behind them

"No need, he found us" TK said, as they all turned to see the Draconequus hovering over them, with Alex coiled in his tail

"Discord, give her back!" Austin shouted, as Discord grinned

"Oh please, I don't have to do any such thing. I found her, so Finders keepers" he smiled, as Jason ran forward

"You monster, you killed my Home!" Bethany shouted, as Discord smiled even bigger

"Oh dear girl, you will have to be more specific. I've killed many people and civilizations in my time. I can't remember ALL the screams" he laughed, as Bethany cried out in pain

"So to answer your next question, yes, it was I who saved this dear girl from falling, and granted her the power I may have, _acquired _during a massacre or two" he said, as Bethany cried out again.

"Wait, you stopped him from falling off that cliff?" Shelby asked, as Discord rolled his eyes

"Of course I saved her, you think a ten year old could have survived a fall like that?" Discord said, circling the gang.

"I whisked her away, just before impact"

"He, he's right about that" Alex stammered, holding her arm

"And ever since then, she's been a little brat, going on and on about how she wanted to see Austin, even after all the luxuries I've given him" Discord groaned, folding his arms

"People need more than just possessions, they need other people" Shelby said, as she marched up to the reality warper

"Kinda hypocritical, coming from you, huh?" he asked, scoffing. Shelby looked taken aback, before lowering her head

"Sure I used to think that way, but I've now realized that I was wrong. I realize now, I only became that way because Alex was taken from me, I thought that if I shut my heart out from people, and only surrounded myself with material things. But I was wrong, and I know that now" she proclaimed, as the others smiled behind her

"Phff, whatever" Discord sighed, as he coiled around Alex

"That's why I had to do a little brainwashing" he said, placing his claws on Alex's head

"Get your claws off him you damn, dirty snake!" Shelby and Austin shouted, as Austin ran toward the beast. He smirked, and snapped his fingers. The two vanished, in a puff of smoke

Austin fell flat on his face, as Shelby ran up to him.

"Are you ok?" She asked, helping him up

"Yeah, where are they?" he asked, as they scanned the arena, not finding them

"There!" TK called out, pointing to one of the obelisks. On it was Discord, as his tail was wrapped around Alex, turning into a chain, as it began to tighten

"Austin, help!" she called out, as Austin gritted his teeth

"Tell you what Austin, Discord said, as he leaned forward

"If you can make it up here before I squeeze Alex in half, I'll give her back" he laughed, as Austin tightened his fist

"You jackass" he whispered, as he turned his body

"You want to hurt my friend?" he asked, as he ground his foot

"I'll make you pay!" he screamed, as he took off running

"Like you can do anything!" Discord cried, as the ground under Austin's feet broke, making him fall back. However, he flipped over, and regained his footing.

"Hmm?" Discord noticed, as Austin ran forward at a blinding speed

"Pesky little brat, what do you think you can do against me?" He asked, as he launched dark holes at Austin, but the teen only managed to continue dodging.

"I am a god! I control this reality, I control all of reality! You are NOTHING compared to me" he said, unaware that Austin was right in his face

"The fuck..." Austin said, as he reared back his fist

"...if I care!" he finished connecting his punch.

Discord was sent flying, as his tail uncurled. Austin managed to grab Alex, and keep her from falling off.

"Henshin!" Bethany called, as the water formed her metallic blue suit. She jumped up in a pillar of water, and grabbed the two, pulling them back down to safety.

"Thanks baby" Austin said

"Why did you call him that?" Alex asked. Ausin began to stammer, when they heard the Earth breaking nearby. Discord rose from the ground, his eyes red with anger

"You honestly thought you could stand a chance against me? Here? In my domain? He asked, gesturing around.

"What do we do? And by we, I mean you" Kitty asked, backing up to the three.

"He's countered every one of your combos dude" Alex whimpered, as her grip on Austin's arm tightened

"Not all of them" Bethany suddenly whispered, as she pulled something out from behind her. In her hand were the black medals. Austin nodded as he silently grabbed them

"Let's see if these will do anything" Austin muttered as he placed the black medals in the belt

"Henshin!" he called out, and the three black rings encircled him

"SASORI! KANI! EBI!" the belt sang, as the black armor locked into place

"SARIK-K-K-K-K-KANIBI!" It finished, and it began to emit the usual energy waves, but this time, they were MUCH bigger.

Suddenly, the walls of the dimension began to crack, as power radiated out of OOO. Light shown through the cracks, before finally, the entire realm collapsed.

"How the hell did you do that?" Discord yelled, as he pulled himself out of the rubble.

"Decade...Decade must have known, that's why he gave me those medals" Bethany said to herself.

Suddenly she realized, the black armor was different now. Instead of being simple like the other combos. It was now much more complex. The body armor extended all over the form, and was a dark, greyish blue now. The claws on his shoulders were now horizontal and more mechanical looking, and his helmet was spikey at the top, not just the sides

"Whoa, what happened to SariKaniBi?" TK asked, as Austin stepped forward

"Now Discord, come at me!" he shouted, as the dragon roared in anger. He charged straight at OOO, but then vanished

"Oh no, he's teleporting!" Alex cried out, but Austin wasn't moving. He was just standing there, his head hung. Suddenly, the Pincer on his right arm shot down, becoming a full claw, and Austin shot his hand out, and grabbed at the air, only for an anguished scream to be heard. Discord suddenly materialized, the claw had grabbed him!

"Whoa, super senses!" Kitty exclaimed, as Austin twirled around, and flung the beast away

The Dragon returned instantly, and began to charge up energy. Austin stood there, as the thigh guards on his armor glowed, and rotated around to his back, locked onto his shoulders, and a mantle extended from them. It was black, with a silver fringe, and it was adorned with a picture that looked like an amalgamation of a Scorpion, Crab, and Lobster.

Discord fired his laser, as Austin then held the mantle up in his hand, and it blocked the laser perfectly. Then his feet glowed, and he stopped being pushed back, as the ground at his feet began to crack. Austin twirled around, and reflected the laser back, hitting point blank. Discord fell to the ground.

"Guys, there you are!" Hunter called out, as he ran up to them, accompanied by Goto and Erika

"Hey Bro!" Dominic called, as Austin walked Alex over to him

"Protect her" he said, before returning to face Discord

"Um, ok, who are you?" Erika asked

"Uh, Alex, Shelby's little sister, and Kamen Rider Poseidon" she said sheepishly, to the shocked faces of the three.

The main seven turned back, watching Discord stirring.

"How can you be so damn powerful?" he coughed, getting to his feet

"Let's face it Discord" Austin finally said, as he slotted the Purple medals into the belt

"Our friendship pretty much lets us do anything!" he said, as he scanned them. The suit froze over, and the ice shattered to reveal PuToTyra there.

"Why do you still patter on and on about 'Friendship'?" Discord demanded, as his eyes turned red again. He twirled his fingers, and a throne made of cotton candy appeared behind him.

"Because, friendship gives us our power!" Kitty shouted, as she ran forward

"Our friendship allows our powers to grow, to become stronger" Dominic called out, raising his fists

"Oh how boring" Discord moaned, closing his eyes and slumping back against the throne

"And Austin's power grows too" Bethany said, holding his hand

"We each offer Austin something different, forming a bond that nothing can destroy, Discord!" Shelby called

"Ankh may be knew to the whole friendship thing, but he is actually fiercely Loyal, sacrificing himself to save us from his fellow Greeed"

"Shelby may have started off as an Ice Queen, but she has proved that Kindness is a better emotion than hatred to share with your friends"

"Bethany Loves me unconditionally, wanting what is best for me, even giving up her own kingdom for me"

"TK may be new to the group, but he didn't let that stop him from becoming fast friends with us. He was always Generous, trying help out when he could"

"Kitty is the Heart of the group, the one who keeps us grounded, and focused on what is really important, but always keeps our spirits up"

"Dominic may not be the smartest, but he is always Honest and wants his friends to be happy. He reassures us when in doubt, and keeps things in perspective"

Suddenly, the medals shot out of the case, and floated around the group, forming a protective barrier, which completely blocked Discord's attack.

"Wait, what's going on?" Ankh asked, as the Medagaburyuu began glowing, before it split into seven copies. Each floated to a different member of the team, as the medals began circling them, creating a sphere of energy.

"And when those emotions are infused in me Discord, they give me the power to do the impossible, the will to go the distance, the strength to stand up to any foe, no matter the danger. They give me, Courage! The Courage to protect my FRIENDS!"

"What's this?" Discord asked, opening his eyes.

"This, Discord, is your doom!" Austin shouted.

"Unlimited Combo!" The seven called out, as the energy of the medals encircled them, lifting them into the air.

"Loyalty!" Ankh screamed as he was surrounded by his own red medals "TAJAAAADORUUUUU!" a voice said, as the red armor appeared on him

"Kindness!" Shelby screamed as she was surrounded by the orange medals "BURAKAAAAWANIIIIII!" a voice said, as the orange armor appeared on her

"Love!" Bethany screamed as she was surrounded by the yellow medals "RATA-RATA-RATORATAH!" a voice said, as the yellow armor appeared on her

"Generosity!" TK screamed as he was surrounded by the green medals "GAATA-GATA-GATA-KIRIBA! GATAKIRIBA! A voice said, the green armor appearing on him

"Heart!" Kitty screamed as she was surrounded by the blue medals "SHA-SHA SHAUTA! SHA-SHA SHAUTA!" a voice said, as the blue armor appeared on her

"Honesty!" Dominic screamed as he was surrounded by the grey medals "sagozo, SAGOZO! A voice said, as the grey armor appeared on him.

"Courage!" Austin called out, as the OOO symbol glowed brilliantly purple "PUTOTYRANOZAURU!" the same voice said, as an aura appeared around the group

"FINAL FRIENDSHIP COMBO SLASH!" The OOO Scanner called, as the energy enveloped them all, and they seemed to glide through the air at Discord

"TASTE THE RAINBOW YOU SOB!" They all screamed as they each slashed through Discord, in an after trail of a rainbow, slicing with their copy axes, before Austin performed the final slash with the Medagaburyuu.

"AAAHHHHHH" Discord shrieked, as his body became stone, as the others dropped to their feet. Discord fell to the ground, as his body slowly became dust, crumbling away. Alex walked up to her former boss.

"Henshin" she called out, as the three medals circled her "SAME! KUJIRA! OOKAMIUO!"The armor generated on her, in a splash of dark blue water.

"Why, why did you do this?" he demanded, coughing up dust. Alex held up her hand, generating the Deepest Harpoon.

"Because, Austin is my friend, I can't be on any side he isn't on" she said, leaning in close. She reared back with her staff, and sliced Discord, scattering him.

ALex just stood there, as energy flowed from her body, joining the other's. The Rainbow energies fluctuated, and a giant rainbow wave flew over the town, restoring all the damage the Elder one did.

"You did it!" Austin cried, as the others ran up to her. "I, I think, I'm free! Finally free!" she said, tears falling down her face.

Ankh looked down, and gasped at what he saw. For in Discord's remains were six core medals!. He raced down to pick them up, but before he could, a Velociraptor Yummy shot out of nowhere. It knocked Ankh over, before scooping up the medals. It then jumped into the air, but not before snarling.

"Ivan..."Ankh growled, as Hunter ran to Ankh's side

**Count the Medals:**

TakaX2, Kujaku X2, Kondoru X2

Kuwagata X2, Kamakiri X2, Batta

Raion, Tora X2, Chita X2

Sai X2, Gorira X2, Zou X3

Shachi X3, Unagi X2, Tako X3

Kobura, Kame, Wani

Sasori, Kani, Ebi

Ptera, Torikera, Tyrano

Imagin, Shocker

Kangaroo

Note: (Reviews welcome and encouraged, as I am always looking for feedback on how to improve my stories!)

I've been thinking of a few new stories to make to put up here. I'm going to put a poll up with a few of my ideas and let you guys decide what to write. I'll leave the poll up till the new year.


	29. chapter 29 needs help

**Hey guys, Austin here, me and Liam need help to continue this story. we have a little done, but there are blanks and we want your input on what the blanks should say. give me a pm or leave a review and make them like if they were in the story**

**The Adjustment, the Hopping Hero, and the**

"She has been gone for a while, hasn't she?" TK asked, as Alex frolicked in the ball pit.

"More like she hasn't been allowed to grow up" Shelbey sighed, as she grabbed her sister by her collar

"Hey Shel, what's that for?" she whined as she dragged her away.

"You are much too old to be doing that!" she hissed

"What do you mean?" she asked innocently

"You're 19 now, not ten, 19 year olds do not jump in ball pits" she explained, dropping her to the ground

Zeke pouted, as Austin and Bethany walked up to the group

"So, how goes Alex's reemersion therapy?" Austin asked, his arm around Bethany's shoulder

"Not well" Shelbey groaned, as she picked up the balls that ALex had knocked out

**First blank guys**

"Henshin!" Austin called, as the Rings emerged

"TAKA! CHITA! KANGARU!" The belt called, as the brown armor now covered his legs, looking sort of like football shoes.

"What can these do here?" Austin asked, looking at his feet, not paying attention to the Yummy

"Austin!" Ankh called just in time, and Austin managed to leap back, much farther than he normally did

"Huh? What?" he asked, as he bounced back and forth on his legs, before getting the hang of it

"Cool, it's kinda like the Batta legs" he said, before performing a spinning jump, straight out of Metroid

"Whew, can't hit whatcha can't see!" Austin taunted, bouncing around the Yummy, making it dizzy, before slicing with his claws

"And now, for the finisher" he said, as he grabbed the scanner

"SCANNING CHARGE!" the belt sang, as Austin felt his lower back becoming heavier, and he realized he had just grown a tail.

"This is odd" he thought, before extending his legs, and delivering a kick that shattered the Yummy into all of one Medal.

"You know, I REALLY hate Ivan's Yummies" Ankh growled, as he scooped up the spoils.

**Second blank**

"That's odd" Bethany said, as she was scrolling through a Web Browser

"Hey, stop clicking random links, my computer is buggy enough as it is" Austin groaned, tossing his pillow in the air

"No, check this out" Jason replied, his eyes focused on the article on screen

"C'mon, let's just watch the movie" Austin whined, making to pull Bethany into his arms, but he ended up falling over.

Admitting defeat, Austn picked himself up off the floor and sat down next to the computer

"Whatever this is, it had better be worth missing Girlfriend time" Austin grumbled, as Bethany turned the computer screen to him

Austin's eyes widened as he saw a very familiar image on screen. It was a smaller version of that same Greeed Coffin that Austin had unsealed about a year ago.

Austin didn't react, he wasn't even sure what he was looking at

"The article says that when Greeed became so great in his kingdom, and it took on a physical form, the Noble King of the Lost Civilization was able to seal it away, but at the terrible price of sealing his power to defeat them" Bethany read aloud

"I'm guessing a few liberties were taken in the telling of that story" Austin muttered, recalling the story Kougami had told him

"But don't you get it, this box contains the power that defeated the Greeed all those years ago!" Bethany repeated, trying to make Austin understand

"Then it could defeat Ivan!" Austin finally realized

"Exactly" Bethany added, as she printed something "I also happened to find an article that says it is being kept in a warehouse"

"Which Warehouse this city has like a million" Austin quipped, as Bethany laughed

**Third blank**

"You know Austin, you shouldn't believe everything you read" Ivan snarked, as he blasted the group with frost

**Fourth blank**

Ivan shoved his hand into Mezool, and ripped it back out, holding all of her Core Medals. She fell back, reverting to human.

"So, you were able to keep _one_" he stated, as he pocketed all the medals. Austin ran forward, the scanner in his hand

"I'm sorry, OOO-boy" Mezool said, touching Austin's arm.

"What..." he asked, before a jolt of electricity ran through him, knocking him out.

"Goodbye, Austin" Mezool cried, as she turned around, and walked toward Ivan.

"And what was that for?" he asked, as she turned to him.

"I had to get him out of the way, he would have tried to stop me from doing this."

"Mezool, you TRAITOR!" Ankh screamed

"Doing what?" Ivan asked, as Mezool suddenly grabbed him, and slowly began turning into cell medals, fusing with him to hold him at bay. The three stood there, shocked, as Mezool started crying.

"Hit him, now!" she screamed, as Hunter and Goto looked at each other, before nodding, and firing their busters. The shots went through Mezool, hitting Ivan

She then fell down, as the medals that made her up fell apart, and thee group saw three of her cores shatter.

Austin just stared in shock, unsure of what just happened. Unfortunately, this gave Ivan the chance he needed to strike Austin with his tail, knocking him out. Outraged at the villain's cheap shot, the four ran at Ivan, but he was able to knock them all out too with a blast of icy wind.

Smiling to himself, he began grabbing the kids, and began to load them into the nearby moving van.

Saving her for last, Ivan walked over to Bethany, and reached out for her neck, when he felt something grab his leg. Looking down, he saw Austin, untransformed, was trying desperately to restrain him. Smirking, Ivan punched him hard in the chest, causing him to collapse.

"It's just too bad Austin" Ivan grinned, pulling Bethany up by the scruff of the neck.

"Looks like I walk away the victor this day" he announced, before shoving the five into the truck, before boarding himself, as Austin tried to sit up, but the pain caused him to double over again as he coughed up blood


End file.
